CONVERSATIONS 



ON 



THE BIBLE, 



BETWEEN 



A MOTHER AND HER CHILDREN. 



_^ 

BY MRS. SARAH HALL. 



FIFTH EDITION, IMPROVED, 



; V -r 



PHILADELPHIA : 
HARRISON HALL, No. 72 SOUTH FOURTH STREET. 

1837. 



. Ha? 
7bl 



Entered according to the Act of Congress, in the year 1837, by 
Harrison Hall, in the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the 
United States, in and for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. 



2 



3/U 



STEREOTYPED BY J. FAGAN PHILADELPHIA. 



/ 




ADVERTISEMENT. 



At the urgent request of a number of the 
friends of the late Author, this new edition is 
offered to the pubhc, under a confident hope 
that the Conversations on the Bible, may be 
continued with the present and many succeed- 
ing generations. With that view the book is 
now stereotyped, for the use of schools ; and 
the publisher has the promise of its adoption 
in several important seminaries of education. 

The recommendations of this work from 
some of the first Divines of the age are con- 
fidently referred to ; and its entire freedom 
from all sectarian bias, is a prominent charac- 
teristic in its favour. 

Teachers will be supplied on very liberal 
terms. 

Philadelphia, 1837. 3 



PREFACE. 



Amidst the splendid improvements which now dazzle 
the world, it is our glory to behold the Bible traversing 
the globe, till the " Sun of righteousness" irradiates, 
alike, the palace and the cottage. But while every 
talent is roused into action, to " prepare the w^ay," — 
while every hand is extended to " exalt every valley, 
and level every mountain and hill," is it not pardona- 
ble to suggest, that, even among those who are ambi- 
tious to promote the magnificent design, there are many 
who are but superficially acquainted with the contents 
of that invaluable book? 

Incredible as it may seem, there is certainly an erro- 
neous indifference to the study of the Old Testament, 
especially to the writings of Moses, in many persons who 
venerate the Scriptures as the volume of inspiration. 

They reverence the New Testament as " the gospel 
of glad tidings," without considering, that if one is the 
casket, the other is the key which displays the treasure 
in the clearest point of view. 

The value of Scripture history, as the only authentic 
account we possess of the earliest ages, and the most 
instructive mirror of man, is not yet estimated as it 
ought to be ; for in it alone, we contemplate characters 
and events, recorded without prejudice or partiality. To 
invite young persons, who yet are unapprised of the 
pleasures and advantages within their reach, to begin 
the delightful study, the following elements are offered, 
with the unaffected diffidence which becomes so imper- 
fect a work. A connected view of the principal nar- 
rative of the Scriptures, with very brief illustrations 
from authors of acknowledged credit, is all that is at- 
tempted. It will be perceived, that the genuineness 
and authenticity of the sacred volume is admitted, not 
argued, in the following " Conversations." Objections 



VI PREFACE. 

which have been so often repeated that few persons 
have not heard them, are sometimes incidentally thrown 
in, either to furnish the uninformed with an answer, or 
to give spirit to the dialogue. 

To talk in our social circles of Scripture doctrines, 
is now as fashionable as it is to be a member of a Bible 
Society ; for in this age of wonders we are all philoso- 
phers and all philanthropists. The title, therefore, of 
this book will lead some to expect that sort of discussion 
to which they are every day accustomed. They will be 
entirely disappointed. The flippancy and temerity with 
which the most abstruse questions of Scripture are in- 
troduced into familiar conversation, is as irreverent as 
it is absurd, and ought to be discouraged. Let us en- 
deavour to ascertain, with a seriousness corresponding 
to the magnitude of the subject, the authority on which 
these truths are given to us ; and if we find, as we cer- 
tainly shall, that they will bear the severest scrutiny, 
let us acquiesce in silence, while we humbly feel their 
superiority to our limited reason. 

That faults may be discovered in this performance, 
there exists not a doubt in the mind of the author. They 
might, perhaps, be extenuated by apology ; but those 
who take upon themselves the office of instructors, have 
little right to insist on the lenity of the public. An 
anonymous work may anticipate candour, because it 
owes nothing to the adventitious weight of reputation. 
Nor is there, in our liberal times, any hostility to a fe- 
male pen, to be deprecated. The moral and intellectual 
sphere of women has been gradually enlarging with the 
progress of the benignant star of Christianity. But it was 
reserved for the nineteenth century, to honour them be- 
yond the circle of domestic fife, — to form them into so- 
cieties, organized, active, and useful in the most excel- 
lent pursuits. Still let them ever remember, that whilst 
here, they may be permitted to emit one invigorating ray, 
— there, it is their duty, and their privilege to shine. 

Philadelphia, 1818. 



PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION. 



Encouraged by the favourable reception of the first 
edition of the " Conversations on the Bible," and espe- 
cially by its introduction into some very respectable 
schools, the Author has ventured to continue her work 
to the end of the Old Testament. 

Whether religious education is promoted by putting 
the Bible into the hands of children as soon as they begin 
to read, has been made a question. Some pious persons 
have thought that the incorrect manner in which it is 
read, may have a tendency to diminish that respect for 
the sacred writings, which is intended to be inculcated ; 
and that the incitement of curiosity would enhance the 
interest of the study, should it be withheld until the intel- 
lectual powers were so far advanced that the Scriptures 
might be better understood. To these objections it is 
answered, that the hazard of postponement is much 
more to be dreaded, than the injury which might arise 
from a contrary course. Whilst children are at school, 
they read whatever is prescribed by their teachers. 
Should they remain ignorant of the Bible until they have 
in some measure escaped from the control of their pa- 
rents and preceptors, other cares and other studies may 
perhaps wholly supersede this. To obviate the difficul- 
ties on either hand, the use of compilations would be 
the more judicious plan; and to these might be added the 
more simple parts of the Bible itself There can be no 
question, of the utter inability of children to comprehend 
the fall of man and the gracious plan of his redemption, 
as they are delineated in the Scriptures ; the poems, the 
prophecies, and the epistles, are far beyond their reach ; 
but the beautiful stories that everywhere abound, may 
be read with advantage. 



Vlll PREFACE. 

It will readily be perceived, that the pupils in the fol- 
lowing Conversations are not supposed to be mere chil- 
dren, but young persons whose minds have been pre- 
pared to receive a connected scheme, or to detect an 
obvious objection. On the other hand, the writer has 
sought to avoid an error too common in the best ficti- 
tious works in our language. To fascinate the imagi- 
nation of the reader with the most engaging pictures of 
youthful beauty, their heroes and their heroines are in 
the very earliest bloom of life, yet they are all Mentors 
and Minerva s. Gifted w^ith a prudence that is never 
surprised, and a perception that never deviates, their 
ready faculties are equal to every event, and to every 
occasion. How far the " Conversations on the Bible" 
succeed in exhibiting young persons, instructed, yet 
not wiser than their teachers, the public will decide. 
Philadelphia, 1821. 



GENESIS. 



Catherine, Have we not your promise, mother, that 
you would converse with us on the history of the Bible ? 

Fanny, I join you, Catherine, for conversation. It is 
to me more impressive than reading ; and in this instance 
especially, it will diminish the trouble of travelling through 
so large a book. 

Mother. Trouble, my dear daughter ! It should be the 
greatest pleasure, as it is your unspeakable privilege, to 
possess and be able to read that book. Your curiosity 
should be awakened, to desire a more intimate knowledge 
of a record, which speaks truth without error, and opens 
to man his origin and destiny. You will find it not less 
entertaining than instructive. 

Fanny. That is all very true, I confess. I never fail 
to find entertainment in the Bible as well as instruction. 
Yet whenever I undertake to read it regularly through, I 
am interrupted by many things I cannot understand. 
What I want, then, is a simple connected narrative of the 
story, with its general relation to the several parts of the 
Bible. 

Mother, I will endeavour to give you such a view, 
though I may not accomplish it so well as I could desire. 
The subject is exceedingly interesting ; for the Bible is 
not only the oldest book in existence, but it contains an 
account of the creation of all things, and a history of man- 
kind from the beginning. To read it regularly through, 
however, is not the most advantageous manner of col- 
lecting its substance or design ; for the books are not all 
placed in the order of time in which they were written, 
and in some instances they are so arranged as to interrupt 
the narrative. Yet no part is irrelevant as you have sus- 
pected, but everything contributes to one ultimate end. 
You have been habituated to the reading of this invalu- 

9 



10 INTRODUCTION. 

able work, so that, in a very brief narrative of its con- 
tents, I must necessarily repeat a great deal that you 
already know. 

Catherine, I often think I am acquainted with the 
whole ; but when we are examined, we all discover our 
ignorance. A general view of the story and system, I 
think, would impress our memory, and enable us better to 
understand the several parts ; for you will admit that the 
Bible is a difficult book, — even the import of the name is 
not obvious. 

Mother. All that we are required to understand, as a 
rule either of faith or of practice, is abundantly clear. 
Some doctrines are indeed mysterious ; but as we can 
prove them to have proceeded from infinite wisdom, we 
may well yield our assent, although we are unable to re- 
duce them to the level of our finite minds. They may be 
mysterious, because they are in their nature incomprehen- 
sible to us. There is, nevertheless, this advantage in the 
communication, that the curiosity which they excite, im- 
pels every faculty of the mind to the study of the Scrip- 
tures ; and our faith in the divine veracity, moreover, is 
exercised. Were we more fully acquainted, than we are, 
with the manners of the people to whom they were origin- 
ally addressed, apparent difficulties would vanish. Many 
have already been dissipated, by the arduous labours and 
indefatigable diligence of a succession of learned travellers 
and philosophers, who have explored the scene of action, 
and examined the languages and customs. The perma- 
nency of these, in that country, contributes effectually to 
the explanation of difficult passages in the sacred writings, 
which are found, in reality, to be obscured only by our 
ignorance. Places are at this moment identified, in many 
instances, by the same names, or by names very similar 
to those by which they were known in the earliest times ; 
and relative narrations are elucidated by the manners and 
traditions of the inhabitants. As to the word Bible, your 
brother, though so many years younger than you are, has 
the advantage of you. I dare say he can tell you the 
meaning of the word. 

Charles. The name is taken from the Greek word 
BibloSy which signifies a book. 



GENERAL CONTENTS OF THE BIBLE. 11 

Mother, Yes. The Bible is the hook by way of emi- 
nence, indicating its superior excellence and authority. It 
consists of two parts, the Old and the New Testament, 
which are connected by a chain of predictions, many of 
them unquestionably fulfilled ; the event and the prophecy, 
thus mutually explaining each other. 

The Old Testament was chiefly written in the Hebrew 
language, — and the New, with the exception, perhaps, of 
the gospel by Matthew, in Greek. They are subdivided 
into books, composed by different hands and in different 
ages throughout the long period of sixteen hundred years, 
yet forming a whole, harmonious in all its parts ; because 
the writers were divinely taught, and their labours were 
all directed to one end, namely, to show the defection of 
man from the righteousness in which he was created, and 
the consequent forfeiture of eternal life. The total and 
uniform depravity of his heart from that moment, and the 
mode of his restoration by the unmerited favour of the 
Sovereign Creator and Disposer of all things, — through a 
Redeemer. 

Connected with and illustrating this one grand design, 
the Bible gives us a history of the creation of the world, 
and the rise and fall of nations, the origin of languages 
and the arts, and a variety of particulars, of which we have 
no other account which bears the credible marks of authen- 
ticity. The Bible consists of narrative and doctrine, pre- 
cept and prophecy. The importance and sublimity of each, 
would alone demonstrate their divine origin, if external 
evidence were wanting. But of this too there is more than 
enough. The sacred books have been subjected to the most 
enlightened and candid scrutiny of their friends, and to the 
persevering malignity of their enemies. Many of these 
latter have been competent to the detection of imposture. 
They have objected, and their objections have been shown 
to be nugatory. The Bible stands unblemished, and the 
Christian can say with confidence, " The Lord will not 
forsake the work of his own hands." 

Prophecy is unquestionably the most obscure portion of 
the Scriptures ; yet is it sufficiently plain, to form the chief 
argument of their divinity. Its predictions are far beyond 
the penetration of human intellect ; and the accomplish- 



12 GENERAL CONTENTS OF THE BIBLE. 

ment of these predictions is so multiplied and exact, as no 
art of man or combinations of men could achieve. The 
most hardened infidelity is compelled to refer both the pre- 
science and the power, to something more than human. 

But our business being with the contents^ I shall not 
speak of the evidence in favour of the Scriptures, You 
have been taught to receive them as the word of God. 
Take it for granted, then, that what you shall hear in the 
course of our conversations is the truth. Yet you are not 
to build your faith upon my word. It is your duty, to ex- 
amine for yourselves, when your minda shall be matured. 
In the mean time, rest assured, that whenever the argu- 
ments by which the Scriptures are defended shall be con- 
sidered, their force will be found irresistible, and the study 
most delightful to a mind properly disposed. 

Fanny, If the accomplishment of a prophecy occur, I 
hope it will comport with your plan to point it out. I 
should like to see the fulfilment of the promises. 

Mother, That, my children, we shall all see. We may 
behold it every day, if we are not wilfully blind. May it 
be your lot, to enjoy the blessings which those promises, 
m their highest import, have offered to your acceptance ! 
With respect to subordinate events, their prediction and 
their fulfilment are so interwoven with the narrative, that 
separation would be destruction ; and the same must be 
premised of the miracles of the Old Testament. You will, 
therefore, hear much of these interesting subjects. 

The first five books of the Old Testament were written 
by Moses, the great Jewish legislator. Taken collectively, 
they are called the Pentateuch. They commence with 
Genesis, which, in reference to the subject, signifies Crea- 
tion ; because it relates the history of the creation of all 
things. 

Genesis contains the history of 2369 years ; and in- 
forms us, first, that the Earth was created in six days by 
the almighty word of God. (B. C. 4004.) " He spake, 
and it was done ; he commanded, and it stood fast ;" and 
the same unerring wisdom pronounced it perfect : so per- 
fect, that we are told, in a beautiful figure, the morning 
stars beheld it with songs, and acclamations of joy. — Job, 
xxxviii, 7. 



THE CREATION. 13 

Every part of nature, both animate and inanimate, bears 
the impress of order; and thus it was in the beginning. 
All things did not start into existence at once, but succes- 
sively. The original matter of which they were formed, 
was produced first, by the omnipotent Word. The spirit 
of God moved upon the elemental chaos, and light and 
darkness became day and night ! Earth, air, and water, 
separated, and took their destined places ; the sun and 
moon began their revolutions ; and the shining stars were 
arranged in the firmament. Herbs, trees, and flowers, 
sprang next from the ground ,* the capacious bosom of the 
deep received its inhabitants; and the feathered tribes ex- 
panded their wings in air. Thus in five days our world 
came progressively from the Creator's hand. But supreme 
Wisdom does not work in vain. Every product of His 
mind must have an aim and end. The flowers would 
bloom and the fruits would cluster in vain, without a hand 
to gather them. Creation would display its magnificence 
in vain, without an intelligent creature to contemplate the 
Creator's glory in his works. Wherefore, on the sixth day, 
Man, the noblest of all, was produced ; and to him came 
all the inferior animals, and he named them and governed 
them. 

Every created being was furnished with a capacity to 
enjoy the Creator's beneficence, according to its nature. 
To man alone was imparted an intellectual power to admire 
and adore, at the same time that he enjoyed. All earth 
and air contributed to his pleasure, but there was none to 
participate ; no being who could unite with him in grati- 
tude to the author, or who could receive and return the so- 
cial afl^ctions with which his soul was endued. But in 
this lonely state he did not long continue ! He was cast 
into a deep sleep ; and when he awaked, he beheld a com- 
panion, in all respects suited to his circumstances. " This 
is now bone of my bones, (said Adam) and flesh of my 
flesh : she shall be called woman, because she was taken out 
of man. Therefore shall a man leave his father and his 
mother, and shall cleave unto his wife : and they shall be 
one flesh." 

The Mosaic account of the creation has been admired 
by the most accomplished scholars. The emphatical sen- 
2 



14 THE SABBATH* 

tence by which the instantaneous production of light is de- 
scribed, has often been cited as an example of the highest 
sublimity. And God said, " Let there be light, — and there 
was light." How exquisitely expressive of the grandeur 
of that power and wisdom, which could speak into exist- 
ence a substance, at once so astonishing and so useful ! 

The seventh day, the glorious Architect rested from his 
labours ; and therefore he " blessed and sanctified" that 
day. By these words, we understand the appointment of a 
Sabbath, or a reservation to himself of one day in seven, 
for his special service, and at the same time for the refresh- 
ment of his creatures by a total cessation of their labours.^ 

The division of time into weeks, which has been handed 
down to us from time immemorial, can no otherwise be 
accounted for, than in the divine ordinance here recorded ; 
for the period is entirely arbitrary, not being indicated by 
any aspect of nature, like days, months, and years, by the 
revolutions of the sun and moon. 

Adam and Evef were placed in the garden of Eden, a 
paradise abounding with all that was delightful to the eye, 
or delicious to the taste. The splendour of creation, and 
the bountiful provision for their enjoyment, might intimate 
to them the existence of a Creator and a Benefactor ; but 
the highest exercise of their mental powers could ascertain 
but little of his nature, or of their own obligations. This 
transcendent knowledge required a divine revelation ; and 
by a divine revelation they learned that their Creator was 
their Sovereign, entitled to their service, and implicit obe- 
dience to his will. The first pair, created innocent, and 
with all holy inclinations, might suppose themselves able 
to pay the requisite submission ; but being endowed with 
perfect freedom of choice, the Sovereign thought fit to 

* AH nations, not absolutely savage, seem to have some knowledge 
of a Sabbath. Hints of a seventh day Sabbath are found in the most 
ancient heathen writers. We possess no blessing for which we ought 
to be more profoundly thankful, than for this day of rest. Those only 
who experience its many uses, both to society and the church, can 
tell the amount of our obligation. Without a Sabbath, there would be 
little or no religion in the world. 

t A word signifying Life, and therefore chosen by Adam as the 
name of his wife, because she was " the mother of all living." 



FALL OF MAN. 15 

prove them by one posiftve command. Accordingly, he 
prohibited the use of a certain tree in the midst of the gar- 
den, in these words : " Of every tree of the garden thou 
mayest freely eat : but of the tree of the knowledge of 
good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it : for in the day that 
thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die." A forbidden 
object becomes desirable to our perverse hearts, from the 
very circumstance of its being forbidden ; but such per- 
versity cannot be supposed of the first pair, in their origin- 
al state of rectitude. Listening to the insidious suggestions 
of Satan, the great enemy of their peace, they were tempt- 
ed to believe, that the tree of knowledge was withheld be- 
cause it possessed the power of exalting their natures to an 
equality with angelic beings. Ambition superseded duty ; 
they ate of the interdicted fruit ! The condition of life 
and happiness was broken, and the penalty of death was 
incurred ! The guilty pair were exiled from paradise, 
where they had been fed by the spontaneous fruits of the 
earth ; and they were condemned to earn their bread with 
toil, and in sorrow. 

Fanny, Was not the punishment severe for the breach 
of one command ; that too an act by which no creature 
was injured ? 

Mother, The command was the test of an obedient dis- 
position ; the breach of this was, therefore, the violation 
of every other ; because the rebellious temper was dis- 
played. The Sovereign has a right to exact perfect obe- 
dience, and man is justly punished for his refusal to ren- 
der it. But man is not left in despair : Divine Mercy had, 
from, all eternity, laid the plan of his deliverance from the 
power and penalty of sin, by a Redeemer ; and he now 
intimated the blessed hope, by a promise to the fallen pair. 

Fanny, You called the command not to eat of the tree, 
a positive command. Are not all the laws of God equally 
binding ? 

Mother, Certainly : but we divide them into moral and 
positive. The first include the duties which we owe to our 
Creator, or to ourselves, and each other, and which our 
own reason might, in some measure, have discovered ; the 
second are such as derive their importance from the will 
of the supreme lawgiver, and such as we could not have 



16 EDEN. DEATH OF ABEL. 

known without a divine revelation. You will keep this dis- 
tinction in mind ; for in the study of the Scriptures, you 
will find frequent examples of the positive, under the Jew- 
ish dispensation, and two under our own, — Baptism, and 
the Lord's Supper. 

Catherine. Where was the garden of Eden situated ? 

Mother. Eden was a very fertile tract of country, 
as it is thought by many, not far from the Persian Gulph, 
and between what are now called Bagdad and Bassora. 
The garden of Paradise, with the river Euphrates running 
through it, is supposed to have been planted where Arecca 
now stands.^ 

The first descendants of Adam and Eve were Cain and 
Abel. Cain cultivated the earth, and Abel tended flocks. 
At an appointed time,f each offered a sacrifice : that of 
Abel was accepted, while Cain's was rejected. 

Fanny. How did God testify his pleasure on that occa- 
sion? 

Mother. The manner is not certain. The distinction, 
however expressed, was made evident to the mind of Cain ; 
for it inflamed him with rage, and, instead of attending to 
Ihe suggestion of his Creator, that he too might be accept- 
ed, if he presented his offering in faith and obedience, his 
jealousy instigated him to the murder of his innocent bro- 
ther. Some divines have imagined that his mother believed 
she had received in him, the first-born, the fulfilment of the 
consoling promise of a Redeemer, and instilled such an 
idea into his mind. When, therefore, he saw his younger 
brother preferred, he was tempted to remove him from the 
possibility of enjoying his birth-right. You may remember to 
have heard our excellent preacher, not long ago, taking oc- 
casion, from this hypothesis, to caution mothers against 
nourishing the mischievous seeds of pride in their children ; 
for thus early we have to lament the sad effects of Adam's 
disobedience, in the depravity of his children, who were 
formed, not like Adam originally, " in the image of God," 

* The situation of Paradise is a point of great controversy among" 
the learned. 

t " In process of time," or, " at the end of days" — as the words may 
be literally translated, and are translated in the marginal reading, seem 
to signify stated worship at the end of six days. 



SACRlPlCfi. 17 

but like him in his fallen state with inclinations averse 
from good. 

Catherine. What is meant by a sacrifice 7 

Mother. Sacrifice generally means an offering made 
to the Deity as an acknowledgment of his power, and a 
payment of that homage which is due to Him. Eucharis- 
tical sacrifices, or thanksgivings, were offered in Para- 
dise ; those which are called expiatory^ were not instituted 
till Adam had transgressed the law of his Creator, and 
had learned, that without an atonement he could not be 
pardoned. That this sentiment has generally prevailed, 
we discover in the fact, that sacrifices have been found 
amongst the religious rites of all nations, before their 
conversion to Christianity. We have no direct account 
of the origin of this mode of worship ; but we hesitate not 
to pronounce it of, divine authority, because Adam was 
taught immediately by his Creator. And without a com- 
mand, it is highly probable he would not have thought of 
destroying the animals committed to his care, nor would 
he have imagined, that an offering, apparently so cruel, 
could be acceptable to a Being, whose benevolence was 
impressed on all around him. 

The translation of Enoch, in the order of events, next 
arrests our attention. He was a descendant of Seth, the 
third son of Adam, who was given to Eve to console her 
for the loss of Abel, and whose family continued a long 
time in the practice of a pure religion. This pious man, 
pious in the midst of universal corruption, was translated 
to heaven when 365 years of age (B. C. 3017), without 
suffering the pain of dying. This remarkable event w^ould 
intimate, to a people destitute as yet of a written revela- 
tion, and guided only by the partial light of tradition, that 
both the souls and bodies of the righteous would find a 
glorious reward. 

The life of man, at this time, was protracted to a great 
length. Methuselah, the oldest of whom we have any 
account and who died in the year of the flood, lived nine 
hundred and sixty-nine years. (B. C. 2348.) The earth 
then would be rapidly peopled ; and wickedness appears 
to have arrived at a great height about this time ; for, in 
the year of the world 1656, all mankind were swept 
2* 



18 THE FLOOD. 

away by a flood, because the earth was filled with violence, 
and the imagination of man's heart was only evil con- 
tinually. From this most awful judgment, one righteous 
man, with his family was preserved. Noah, the great- 
grandson of Enoch, was commanded by God to build an 
ark, or vessel, and to go into it with his wife, his three 
sons, Shem, Ham, and Japhet, and their wives ; and to 
take with them also cattle and fowls, and creeping things, 
of every description, that they might be kept alive. Of 
clean birds and beasts, seven pairs, and of unclean, two. 

Catherine. All the creatures being alike the production 
of a holy God, why are any called unclean 1 

Mother. The term is here first used, and no reason is 
given. From subsequent scriptures we learn, that clean 
animals were such as might be used in sacrifice ; unclean 
were of the kinds forbidden. In the ceremonial laws of 
the Israelites, of which we shall speak by and by — we 
find a similar discrimination with respect to their food. 

Fanny. It would seem impossible to construct a ves- 
sel sufficiently capacious to contain such a multitude of 
creatures, together with the provision necessary for their 
subsistence. 

Mother. The Mosaic history has been assailed at all 
points ; and your difficulty, more obvious than many 
which have been objected, has not been overlooked. 
Moses gives the dimensions of the ark, and men who 
were qualified for the task, have calculated that it was 
adequate to its purpose. The great length of time required 
to construct a vessel of sufficient strength and dimensions, 
to- contain so many living creatures, and to resist a deluge 
of waters, afforded an opportunity to the sentenced race, 
to return to their long-suffeiing Sovereign, had they been 
so inclined. 

Charles. How long was Noah employed in building 
the Ark ? 

Mother. Moses has not told us ; nor has he left suffi- 
cient data, to enable us to calculate with certainty. Sub- 
sequent writers have therefore disagreed on this point. 
Some say, a hundred years. Others think, even a longer 
period. While the Ark was preparing, he warned his 
contemporaries of the impending calamity ; but no peni- 



THE FLOOD. 19 

tence appeared to avert the divine wrath, and "in the 
six hundredth year of Noah's age, in the second month 
and the seventeenth day of the month, were all the foun- 
tains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of 
heaven were opened, and it rained forty days, and all the 
high hills and all the mountains that were under the 
whole heaven were covered, and all flesh died that moved 
upon the earth." 

Charles. I think the hills must have been compara- 
tively very low. Forty days of rain would not cover our 
high hills, much less our mountains. 

Mother, You forget, my son, that the deluge is not 
said to have been effected by the rain alone. " The foun- 
tains of the great deep were broken up." We do not 
know the precise manner of this awful event, but we can 
imagine vast torrents of water bursting from the bowels 
of the earth to be designed by the phrase. The amount 
of these, added to the rain, we cannot calculate ; but 
that they did surround the globe, even to the highest point 
of land, is proved by appearances existing at this day, 
which can be accounted for, only on the supposition of 
an universal deluge. 

Fanny, I should like to know what you allude to, 
because I wish to have no scruples respecting any part of 
the Bible. 

Mother, I will mention some. Vegetable matter, which 
must have grown on the surface of the earth, is now found 
at great depths below it. Marine plants, skeletons of 
fishes, and vast quantities of shells, are found buried in 
the summits of high mountains in various parts of the 
world. Bones too of animals, the natives of one climate, 
are discovered in another, where they could not have 
existed in a living state. How all these things could 
have been deposited in places so extraordinary, we never 
could have known, had not Moses recorded the history of 
the flood. 

Charles. Mother, I do not yet understand your proofs. 

Mother, It is natural, my son, to suppose, that the 
affrighted creatures, both man and beast, would flee for 
security to the highest points of land in their respective 
districts, while the waters were rapidly rising around 



^0 THE FLOOD. 

them. The immense power of these might carry some 
of the animals along with them, to places very distant 
from their native soil. Fish and vegetables might sink 
into the chasms formed by " the fountains of the great 
deep breaking up ;" — and there they are found at this 
day. It is no unreasonable imagination, that these depo- 
sits were intended for the very purpose which they now 
subserve, — a continuing evidence of the truth of the 
Mosaic history. 

Fanny. This is a curious subject. I suppose I might 
learn more of it than I know, from the Bible, if I read 
more attentively than I do. But you, mother, can tell us 
how long Noah remained in the ark. 

Mother. I am always pleased with the expression of 
your curiosity. I will gratify it, by relating some particu- 
lars respecting the flood. 

The seventeenth day of the second month, when the 
rain began, answers to the seventh of December, as some 
learned men calculate, and to the beginning of November, 
as others reckon. The waters from the clouds and from 
the hidden sources in the earth, increased the flood for 
one hundred and fifty days, or five months, until it had 
risen about twenty-seven feet above the top of the highest 
mountains. About the beginning of May the waters began 
to abate, and about the end of it, the ark rested on the 
mountains of Ararat. Toward the end of July, the tops 
of the mountains were seen, and on the twenty-seventh 
day of the second month (the eighteenth of December) 
Noah and his family went out from the ark, where they 
had been a year and ten days. 

Charles. In what part of the world are these memo- 
rable mountains situated ? 

Catherine. Ararat, it is generally thought, is a moun- 
tain of Armenia, in Asia, a part of a chain, called Cau- 
casus. 

Mother. The country is high. It is said to have been 
at that time very fertile, and therefore most suitable for 
the first habitation of man, after the flood. The period 
of time from the creation to the flood, embraces sixteen 
hundred and fifty-six years; and is called by chronolo- 
gists the first age of the world. 



ANTEDILUVIAN LONGEVITY. 21 

Charles. Were the years of the antediluvians like 
ours, containing each three hundred and sixty-five days ? 
Perhaps they were months. Only think, — Methusaleh 
lived nine hundred and sixty-nine years. What a prodi- 
gious length of time ! 

Mother. They were literally years. The numbers 
recorded by Moses can, on no other hypothesis, be recon- 
ciled with his history. The age even of the oldest man, 
reduced to months, would not equal the period allotted to 
many in our own day ; and that of others would dwindle 
into comparative childhood. 

Charles, I suppose their climate was more healthful 
than ours. 

Mother. The earth may have been more healthful 
before the flood, than it has been since, or it may be, that 
a vegetable diet might contribute to lengthen life. From 
the words spoken to Noah, when he took possession of 
the new earth, " Every moving thing that liveth shall be 
meat for you ; even as the green herb have I given 
you all things," it would seem, that animal food had not 
been allowed to man before the deluge. But whatever 
may have been the means of longevity, the design is evi- 
dent. Having no written language, a greater number of 
contemporary witnesses, might, by tradition, hand down 
the history of the creation and subsequent events. 

Methuselah having lived with Adam two hundred and 
forty-three years, and with Shem, the son of Noah, ninety- 
seven ; and again, Shem living to the days of Abraham, 
the history might be carried on with certainty and pre- 
cision. Still, the account of the first ages does not rest 
solely on the memory or veracity of the antediluvian 
patriarchs. Moses, as you will find by and by, was fa- 
voured with an intimate communication with the Creator, 
by whom he was inspired, and who alone could reveal 
the history of the creation, and the arrangement of matter, 
— events which were anterior to the existence of any 
human being. 

The first act which Noah performed, afler he descended 
from the ark, was to build an altar and offer a sacrifice. 
Nothing, surely, could have been more natural or becom- 
ing, than to express his gratitude for a deliverance so ex- 



22 THE RAINBOW. 

ceedingly wonderful ! We sometimes see extreme distress 
brought on a small district of country by a partial inun- 
dation ; but how faint an emblem of that universal destruc- 
tion of mankind, in a flood that involved the whole 
terrestrial globe ! 

The mercy of his Divine Preserver did not stop here. 
He graciously assured Noah, that he would not again 
sweep mankind from the face of the earth. But so long 
as it remained, his creatures should continue to enjoy and 
to cultivate it, through the vicissitudes of time ; " that 
seed-time and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer 
and winter, and day and night should not cease." To 
confirm the faith of man in His promise, He " set his bow 
in the cloud," and directed the family of Noah to behold 
that beautiful arch, as a token of the everlasting covenant 
between God and every living creature ; that the waters 
should no more become a flood to destroy all flesh. 

Fanny, Do you think, mother, that a rainbow had 
never been seen before that time ? Surely it had rained 
before the deluge. 

Mother. There are two opinions, my dear, on this 
question ; but no person can now determine, which is the 
more correct. Some suppose the rainbow to have always 
appeared, under the same circumstances in which we 
behold it at the present day, and that it was merely 
pointed out on the present occasion, as the memorial of a 
promise. Others believe, that this beautiful object was 
now first produced, and for this particular purpose. 
" Though it had rained," say they, " before the deluge, yet 
the superintending Providence, which caused the rainbow 
to appear as a pledge of the assurance that he gave, (that 
the world should never more be destroyed by water,) 
might have prevented the concurrence of such circum- 
stances in the time of rain, as were essentially necessary 
for the formation of a bow. It might have rained when 
the sun was set, or when he was more than fifty-four 
degrees high, when no bow could be seen ; and the rain 
might continue, between the spectator and the sun, until 
the clouds were expended, or in any other direction, but 
that of an opposition to the sun." 

So many circumstances are necessary to coincide, for 



Noah's prophecies. 23 

the formation of a rainbow, that even now it appears in 
but few of the rains, which our beneficent Preserver 
showers down, to fertilize the land and render the air 
salubrious. 

The Supreme Being, having condescended to promise 
by a covenant, that he would be the Protector of his crea- 
tures, continued to manifest his superintendence, both 
general and particular, by a variety of means, but more 
especially by a series of prophecies. These supernatural 
intimations of the divine will, from the first obscure ray 
which cheered our fallen parents in Paradise, to the full 
blaze of gospel light, harmonious in their tendency, and 
progressive in their clearness, besides their relation to the 
intermediate dispensations of Providence, still pointed to 
their ultimate end. They kept up the expectation of an 
extraordinary person, who should deliver mankind from 
the curse incurred by disobedience, both on him, and, for 
his sake, on the earth which he inhabited. 

Lamech, for example, seems to have imagined, that he 
had received the promised benefactor, when, on the birth 
of his son Noah, he exclaims, " this same shall comfort 
us concerning our work and toils of our hands, because 
of the ground which the Lord hath cursed." And Noah, 
alluding to the same hope, in the blessing pronounced on 
his children, distinguishes his son Shem, as being favour- 
ed with some peculiar relationship to the Deity, in these 
words ; " Blessed be the LORD God of Shem:' Noah 
was singularly honoured, as we have seen, and Shem 
became the progenitor of God's peculiar people. 

Noah, having been a preacher of righteousness to the 
old world, became a prophet to the new , being enlightened 
to foretel the future fortunes of his children. On Shem 
and Japhet, who were virtuous persons and dutiful sons, 
he pronounced a blessing, — while Ham is assured, that 
he should be a " servant of servants to his brethren." 

Fanny. Then Ham, I suppose, did not deserve a bless- 
ing? 

Mother. You are right. The Supreme Disposer of 
events is always just. Ham had himself a bad disposi- 
tion ; but his posterity, who were chiefly implicated in the 
prophecy, were abominably wicked. Prophecies are sel- 



24 TOWER OF BABEL. 

dom to be understood of single persons : they generally 
comprehend whole nations ; as you will find, when you 
come to study them. We shall notice them now, only 
when they elucidate the history in which we are engaged. 

Charles. I have heard one of our professors say, that 
Ham became black, in consequence of the curse pro- 
nounced upon him by his father ; and thus he accounts 
for the colour of the Africans, his posterity. 

Mother. Your professor, my dear, has no authority 
for his opinion ; nor need we undertake to discuss the 
question. Let us confine ourselves chiefly to the letter of 
Scripture, and if we cannot there discover the causes of dif- 
ference in the colour of the human family, we can with cer- 
tainty account for the varieties in language. There we 
learn, that though mankind had greatly multiplied afler the 
flood, " they were yet of one language and of one speech,^^ 
until, finding themselves straitened for room in the hilly 
countries of Armenia, where, it is generally thought, the/ 
had first settled when they descended from the ark, they 
began to spread over the adjacent lands. Travelling west- 
ward, they came to a plain called Shinar, and on the spot, 
as it is supposed, where the city of Babylon afterwards 
stood, they began to build a city and a tower, whose top 
should reach the heavens, to perpetuate their name to suc- 
ceeding generations. But God, who does not always 
favour the designs of ambitious men, was pleased to send 
among these projectors, such a confusion of languages, 
that they could not understand one another ; and the 
place was called Babel, which imports confusion. One 
tie, identity of speech, which had hitherto held together 
the great family of Noah, being now dissolved, they dis- 
persed yet further with less reluctance. Still, as the num- 
ber of mankind was comparatively small, it is not to be 
supposed, that they could at once form very extensive set- 
tlements. The children of Shem remained in Asia, and 
those of Ham are still found in Africa : Mizraim, his 
grandson, led colonies into Egypt, and founded a powerful 
kingdom ; whence Egypt is sometimes called the land of 
Ham. 

Europe was the portion of Japhet; and he, at least, 
must have practised the art of ship-building, which they 



CALLING OF ABRAM. 25 

had learned from Noah, their progenitor ; for, without it, he 
could not have taken possession of the isles of the Medi- 
terranean sea, included in his lot. Petty monarchies, 
called Patriarchal, in which the head of each family was 
both its chief and its king, then prevailed. Nimrod is the 
first person mentioned, who founded a kingdom. He be- 
gan his reign by building the stupendous city of Babylon, 
on the Euphrates. 

Fanny, What was the primitive language ? 

Mother, The Hebrew, it is generally supposed. The 
Chaldee, the Syriac, and the Arabic, have contended for 
priority ; but the Hebrew has the better claim. The Old 
Testament is written in the Chaldee character, but what 
we call the Samaritan is thought by many to be the most 
ancient Hebrew letter. 

No event of importance, after the miracle at Babel, is 
recorded, till the calling of Abram, a descendant of Shem. 
The birth of Terah, his father, concludes the second age 
of the world. 

During this lapse of ages, the knowledge of the Deity 
had become greatly obscured and debased by ignorance 
and idolatry ; for no written law was yet given, but, orally, 
a few moral and ceremonial precepts. To transmit, there- 
fore, to posterity, the knowledge of one God and his essen- 
tial attributes, and to preserve in symbols and prophecies 
the promise of a Saviour, the particular family, of which, 
at the appointed time, he was to come, was now to be sepa- 
rated from the gentile world. The principal subject then 
of the Old Testament, from this epoch, is the history of 
this distinct and highly favoured people. They were called 
Hebrews, either from Eber, their ancestor, who was the 
great-grandson of Shem, or, more probably, from the fact 
that they came from beyond (in the Hebrew language, eber 
signifies beyond) the Euphrates. In latter times, they have 
been known by the name of Jews. 

As the founder of this nation, Abram, the son of Terah, 
and the tenth from Noah, was selected and commanded by 
God to leave Chaldea, his native country, and go into the 
land of Canaan, the inheritance of his posterity, " in whom 
all the families of the earth should be blessed." (B. C. 1921.) 
3 



26 ABRAM IN EGYPT. 

Charles. Was this a repetition of the promise made to 
our first parents ? 

Mother. A blessinoj so extensive could mean no less. 
But it IS not to be supposed that it was clearly understood 
by Abram, who, at that time, had no child ; and both he 
and his wife were old. Yet he did not hesitate to believe 
him who he knew would find means to make good his 
promise. 

Some years before his death, Terah had come with his 
family from Chaldea to Haran, in Mesopotamia, and died 
there. After his death, Abram, and Lot, the grandson of 
Terah, proceeded to the land of Canaan ; and they pitched 
their tents first at a place called Sichem, (in our day, Na- 
plous, or Napolose,) and afterwards further south, at Bethel. 
At each place, we observe, they lefl an altar, the monu- 
ment of their piety. 

A famine which greatly afflicted Canaan, in the follow- 
ing year, (B. C. 1920) obliged Abram to go with his family 
into Egypt for subsistence. When they arrived at the bor- 
der of that country, forgetting for a moment his accustom- 
ed confidence in divine Providence, Abram requested Sarai, 
his wife, to call herself his sister, lest her beauty might be 
fatal to him ; and she consented to this deception. When 
they came into Egypt, and resided near the court, the 
princes saw her, and spoke of her in admiration before the 
king. This was enough to determine her fate. She was 
immediately conducted to the palace, according to the still 
prevailing custom of oriental despots, whom no law re- 
strains. Her supposed brother was respectfully treated for 
her sake. But great afflictions fell upon the royal family ; 
and Pharaoh, who seems not to have been ignorant of a 
superintending providence, understood that they were the 
punishment of his injustice to the strangers. He ordered 
Abram therefore into his presence, and very properly re- 
proved him, — Why hast thou brought these evils on me? 
Why saidst thou she is my sister, so I might have taken 
her to be my wife : she is thine ; take her and go thy way. 
And he charged his servants to dismiss them honourably, 
with all their possessions. 

The same year, after the famine had ceased, Abram, 
^^^<Vj his wife and his nephew, returned to their former 



LOT^S WIFE. 27 

residence near Bethel. But their flocks were become so 
numerous, that they could no longer remain together. The 
ground they occupied was insufficient for their support, 
and disputes frequently arose between their herdsmen. 
That they might not themselves be involved in contention, 
these primeval shepherds agreed to separate. Lot accord- 
ingly journeyed on towards the river Jordan, and pitched 
his tents on a fertile plain, watered by that celebrated 
stream. 

Lot was still in the territory of the Canaanites, the de- 
scendants of Ham, who, as I hinted just now, were by this 
time abandoned to vices of every description. Exemplary- 
judgments had been denounced against them, and these 
the Sovereign x\veno;er beo-an now to execute. But the 
virtue of Lot was res^arded with singular favour. Two 
ano-els, in the character of travellers, were commissioned 
to tell him that Sodom, the city of his residence, would be 
consumed by fire from heaven, and to direct him to repair- 
with his family to the mountains. He obeyed ; and thus, 
wdth his two daughters, vvas preserved ; whilst his wife, 
heedless of an express command, " not to look back," 
lingered. Bewailing, perhaps, her unw^orthy city and 
friends, she forgot the injunction, and '• was turned into a 
pillar of salt." 

Charles, Is that metamorphosis supposed to be literally 
true ? 

Mother, The words of Moses are oflen metaphorically- 
understood by infidels to serve their own impious ends ; 
but as his history was written for the instruction of the 
common people, and all classes were commanded to teach 
it to their children, we can seldom admit of figures beyond 
their comprehension. In this case, however, commenta- 
tors have found several interpretations to explain the diffi- 
culty. It is enough for us to know, that she was punished 
for disobedience ; and let us remember the example of Lot's 
wife, whenever we are tempted to transgress a known 
command ! 

Five populous cities with all their inhabitants were utterly 
destroyed by this judgment, and a remarkable lake now 
covers the soil where once they flourished — the lasting 
monument of that tremendous event ! 



28 CANAAN PROMISED. 

Catherine. You mean, I suppose, the lake Asphaltites ; 
or, in more modern language, the Dead Sea. But why do 
you call it a remarkable lake? 

Mother, Because its appearance and properties are 
really so, independently of the fables to which it has given 
rise. It has been called the Dead sea, for example, because 
its waters were supposed to have a fatal influence on animal 
and vegetable life. Modern travellers have detected the 
fallacy of this opinion. 

Catherine. How is it ascertained that it flows where 
Sodom once stood? 

Mother, The site is described with suflicient precision 
by Moses ; the Arabs who dwell on its borders acknowledge 
it, and, according to some writers, call it " the sea of Lot." 
Mr. Maundrel^ who has written an account of A Journey 
to Aleppo^ was even told by two aged persons of probity, 
that they had actually seen pillars, and other fragments 
of buildings in the water near the shore, but he could not 
discover them. 

Let us now return to Abram, who, soon after the de- 
parture of his nephew, had removed his tents from Bethel, 
and had taken up a temporary residence on the plains of 
Mamre. Here the promise which had been intimated to 
him, was repeated, and in more explicit terms. His name 
was changed to Abraham^ and that of his wife to Sarah.^ 
" I will bless her," said the divine oracle, " and give thee 
a son of her (B. C. 1897,) and thou shalt call his name 
Isaac, and she shall be a mother of nations, and kings of 
people shall be of her. Unto thy seed have I given this 
land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river Euphra- 
tes ; they shall be strangers in a land that is not theirs, and 
shall serve them, and they shall afflict them four hundred 
years. And also that nation whom they shall serve will 
I judge, and afterwards shall they come out with great 
substance." 

Charles, Had the natives been acquainted with these 

* Hebrew names, unlike ours, which are entirely arbitrary, were 
significant. Abraham and Sarah, our philologists translate, " the 
heads or progenitors of a multitude," according with the spirit of the 
annexed prophecy. 



ABRAHAM AT GE1{ R. 29 

prophecies, they would not have suffered this distinguished 
stranger to remain among them. 

Mother. Perhaps not. But his character and immense 
riches procured him respect. He must have been an emi- 
nent/ person at this time, for we read of his taking three 
hundred and eighteen trained servants, born in his house, 
to rescue his kinsman Lot, who had been seized with all 
his goods, at the sacking of Sodom, in a quarrel amongst 
the petty princes of the vale of Siddim. 

Journeying still farther south, Abraham came into Phi- 
listia on the border of the Mediterranean, and halted near 
Gerar, the residence of the king. Again he was tempted 
to represent the fair Sarah as his sister, and a second 
time she was taken to the palace ; but Abimelech, yet 
unconscious of the wrong he had done, was warned in a 
dream — " Thou art but a dead man for the woman whom 
thou hast taken — -for she is a man's wife," was the appal- 
ling sentence. With unfeigned horror the terrified prince 
received it, and appealed to Omniscience — "In the inno- 
cency of my heart have I done this. Said he not unto 
me, she is my sister? and she — even she herself said, 
he is my brother. Lord, wilt thou also slay a righteous 
nation ?" " Restore the man his wife," said his just Judge, 
" for he is a prophet and shall pray for thee and thou shalt 
live. But if thou restore her not, thou shalt die, thou and 
all thy house." In the morning early, therefore, Abime- 
lech collected his servants and related his dream, and sent 
for the strangers and reprehended them both ; inquiring 
wherein he had offended, that they should lead him into 
such imminent danger; or what evil disposition they had 
seen in him to justify their suspicion of his integrity? 
*f Because I thought," replied the timid husband, " surely, 
the fear of God is not in this place, and they will slay me 
for my wife's sake, and yet indeed she is my sister, 
the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my 
mother." 

Catherine, I hope Abraham was not really married to 
his sister? 

Mother. Not his sister as we understand that appella- 
tion, but as it is commonly used in scripture, where rela- 
tives of the same stock are called brethren, or sisters, 
3* 



30 BIRTH OF ISAAC. 

though not children of the same father and mother. 
Taking advantage of this custom, Abraham imagined he 
might with impunity defend himself by a mental reserva- 
tion. 

Catherine. But in his case it was a duty to tell the 
whole truth, because his concealment of a part not only 
exposed him to the danger of losing his wife, but entan- 
gled the king, who it appears was an upright man. 

-Mother. The vicious state of public morals had not 
permitted Abraham to hope that he should again find 
such disinterested virtue, united with power, as he had 
seen in Pharaoh. But the king of Gerar was equally 
just, and yet more liberal : for together with Sarah, he 
sent large presents to Abraham, of cattle and servants 
and silver ; and nobly offered him the choice of his whole 
domain to settle wheresoever he pleased. Thus by his 
piety and munificence he obtained the prayers of Abraham, 
and the blessing of heaven. 

You may perhaps think, my children, that I speak with 
lenity of the errors of this distinguished patriarch in the 
two instances I have related. It is not for me to soflen 
or disguise the characters I present to you. The scriptures 
have not done it. They show us that the best of men 
were fallible. I have told you the facts, and the reasoning 
by which Abraham excused himself— but he was not 
innocent. No deviation from the truth can be justified. 
The little artifices by which we think to advance our own 
interests, oflen recoil upon ourselves. What must have 
been the remorse of Abraham when he found himself sur- 
passed in uprightness by two heathen kings ! 

The following year the promise of a son to Abraham 
and Sarah, was verified in the birth of Isaac ; the father 
was in the hundredth year of his age, and his wife in her 
ninetieth, at this period. 

The patriarch had now dwelt at Gerar some years in 
such high prosperity that the Philistines, ascribing it pro- 
perly to the particular favour of Heaven, were anxious to 
secure his friendship. To obtain this favour the prince 
himself, attended by his general, made a visit to their 
illustrious guest ; and courteously reminding him of the 
kindness he had received, entreated, that he would engage 



OFFERING OF ISAAC. 31 

not to use his power to the injury of the people who had 
so hospitably entertained him. A treaty of friendship was 
accordingly made, and Abraham made use of the oppor- 
tunity to inform the king that he had been violently de- 
prived of a well near the place of their present meeting 
by the herdsmen of Abimelech. The right was acknow* 
lodged at once, and the well ever afterwards called Beer^ 
Sheba, or the well of the oath, because it was the place 
where a covenant was ratified by an oath. 

At Beer-Sheba, the family of Abraham continued at 
least till the twenty-fifth year of Isaac's age; for there 
w^e find them when the latter became the subject of a 
most affecting story. 

Charles. Do not omit the stories, my dear mother ; I 
love to listen to them. 

Mother, All that I have said to you, my dear, or shall 
say, is one connected story, though episodes, particularly 
affecting, are sometimes interposed, and it is no wonder 
you should hear them with delight. You cannot study 
them too much, for they are accurate pictures of the 
human heart, and related with exquisite skill. The most 
accomplished writers of fiction have taken hints from 
many of them for their finest compositions ; but as the face 
of nature is always more interesting than a copy, so the 
real incidents of life are infinitely more affecting than the 
best imitations. The wisdom and goodness which dictated 
the scriptures for our instruction, are evinced in giving us 
lessons in a form so engaging, that pleasure and profit go 
hand in hand. That which lam about to relate of Abra- 
ham, would be incredible, if it were not stamped with the 
unquestionable impress of veracity. 

To put the faith and obedience of this eminent patriarch, 
who is emphatically called " the father of the faithful," to 
the most rigid trial, God commanded him to take Isaac 
his son into the land of Moriah, and offer him on one of 
the mountains for a burnt offering. Isaac, his only son, 
whom he loved — Isaac, whose children were to be multi- 
plied as the stars of heaven — and in whom, " all the fami- 
lies of the earth were to be blessed !" — How can all this 
come to pass if he is to be put to death before he has one 
child from whom a race might descend 1 Without being a 



32 OFFERING OF ISAAC. 

father; the father of an only child — and one too from 
whom great and peculiar blessings were to be derived, it is 
impossible to appreciate the extreme hardship of this sin- 
gular experiment. 

Fanny, I often recollect a very affecting answer of a 
lady which I have somewhere read, who, in excessive 
grief for the loss of a child, was exhorted by her confessor 
to imitate the resignation of Abraham. " Ah ! father," 
cried she, " God would never have required such a sacri- 
fice at the hand of a mother^ 

Charles. But how could Abraham be made to believe 
that so cruel a sacrifice was required at his hand ? 

Mother. The Creator of the human mind, my son, 
must know how to impress it infallibly ; and we may be 
sure that he would leave no doubt of the source of a 
command so truly distressing. We may be sure the patri- 
arch had none, because he obeyed. He obeyed too, 
because he knew that the sovereign had a right to require 
the life he had given. He arose early in the morning, and 
took Isaac his beloved child, and two of his young men, 
and after cutting the wood for the fire, went three days' 
journey into the land of Moriah. When they came near 
to the appointed place, Abraham directed the servants, 
who might have interposed to prevent the execution of his 
purpose, to remain there, while he and the lad should go 
and worship. Then laying the wood on the shoulders of 
his son, and taking the fire and the knife in his own hand, 
they proceeded to prepare the altar. Unapprised of the 
severe duty imposed on his father, Isaac very naturally 
inquired — " Here is the fire and the wood, but where is 
the lamb for a burnt offering ?" " My son," said the pious 
Abraham, " God will provide himself a lamb." And so 
indeed he did ; for at that moment when, having bound 
his son, and laid him on the altar — his uplifted arm with 
still unshaken confidence, prepared to strike the fatal 
blow — the angel of the Lord called to him out of heaven, 
" Lay not thine hand on the lad — for now I know that thou 
fearest God, seeing that thou hast not withheld thy son, 
thine only son from me." Looking up, the patriarch be- 
held a ram caught in the thicket by his horns. This he 
took, and offered instead of his son. This act of faith, 



OFFERING OF ISAAC. 83 

more honourable to Abraham than wealth and military 
triumphs, God was pleased- to reward with renewed assu- 
rances of protection and favour. (B. C. 1871 ) 

Charles, Such an uncommon act of submission cer- 
tainly deserved a reward. 

Mother, No act of man can deserve a reward from 
the Deity to whom all his services are due. But virtue 
and piety are sometimes graciously distinguished even in 
this life, and for our encouragement we know, they will 
certainly be rewarded hereafter. 

A very eminent advocate for the divine legation of 
Moses, whose learning and ingenuity entitle his opinions 
to great respect, takes another view of this remarkable 
event in the life of Abraham, which, although not incon- 
sistent with, is somewhat different from that which I have 
just presented to you. Action being a common mode of 
communication in the East, he considers this whole exhi- 
bition as designed to develop completely the promise to 
Abraham (hitherto opened by degrees and but partially 
understood,) by a lively representation* of the sacrifice of 
an only son, which should one day be offered on this same 
Mount of Moriah. Thus the seemingly harsh command 
became really the brilliant reward of his singular piety. 

Catherine, Why then did Moses in his relation, con- 
ceal this most interesting truth, and speak of the command 
as the trial of Abraham's faith ? 

Mother, It was truly, though incidentally, a trial of 
his faith ; while, according to this writer, it had, primarily, 
a more important reference ; which, his people being then 
under a preparatory dispensation, Moses was not permitted 
to declare otherwise, than in his figurative institutions. 

Catherine, Why is Isaac denominated the only son of 
Abraham, when Ishmael was also his son ? 

Mother, Because the spiritual promise bestowed upon 
Abraham was to be transmitted through Isaac to his poste- 
rity, and finally from them to all mankind. Ishmael was 
the son of Hagar, a wife less honourable than Sarah, who, 
being the first, was considered the superior. 

* Bishop Warburton considers this the true interpretation of that 
declaration of Christ, " Abraham rejoiced to see my day." 



34 ISHMAEL. 

In those days it was the practice even of good men, to 
have several wives. Sarah seems, at first, to have adopted 
Ishmael, supposing him to be the promised heir of Abra- 
ham. But when Isaac was afterwards given to her, she 
instigates her husband (not however without provocation 
from the unbecoming conduct of both mother and son,) 
to banish both from his house, declaring that he should 
not inherit with her son. This unreasonable desire was 
very disagreeable to the venerable patriarch, but his un- 
erring Counsellor commanded him to listen to his wife, 
and comforted him with an assurance, that of Ishmael 
also, " he would make a great nation." Thus encouraged, 
he sent away the unhappy Hagar and her son, furnishing 
them, however, with such provisions as she could carry. 
When these were spent, as they wandered in the wilder- 
ness of Beer-Sheba, despairing of any further supply, she 
laid her son down under some bushes, and that she might 
not see him die (B. C. 1892,) she sat down to weep at a 
distance ! From this overwhelming anguish she was 
aroused by a voice of consolation, directing her to " take 
up the lad, and give him drink from a well," which she 
now perceived to be at hand ; for " he should live and be- 
come a great nation." 

Before his birth, when Hagar had fled into the same 
wilderness from the unkind treatment of her mistress, 
"The Angel of the Lord" had appeared unto her, and 
told her, " that her posterity should not be numbered for 
multitude, that her son should be a wild man, that his 
hand should be against every man, and every man's hand 
against him, yet he should dwell in the presence of all his 
brethren." And now that the prophecy might be fulfilled, 
the hand of providence conducted him to the desert, where 
he grew up and " became an archer" or a wild man. His 
children, the Arabs, are a savage race. To this day they 
live by violence and rapine, their hand being against every 
man, and all men are their enemies. Yet they preserve 
their independence, and are a very numerous people 

Catherine, Their country, perhaps, is not worth the 
expense of a conquest. We hear much of the deserts of 
Arabia. 

Mother » It is indeed generally sandy and barren, but 



ISAAC. 36 

it is interspersed with beautiful spots, and fruitful valleys. 
One part was anciently distinguished by the name of 
Arabia the happy. But were it utterly worthless, it would 
seem to be the interest of the neighbouring states to extir- 
pate such a pestilent race of robbers ; and in fact, it has 
often been attempted, but never accomplished. They 
boast of their descent from Abraham, have still some cus- 
toms in common with the Jews, and justify their robberies, 
as travellers have told us, by the plea, that their progenitor 
was turned out of doors to take whatever he could get. 

After these things had happened, the patriarch removed 
from Beer-Sheba, and again pitched his tents in the plain 
of Mamre, where he had formerly dwelt. Here, Sarah 
died, and was buried in a piece of ground which he pur- 
chased at that time for a burial place for his family. 

The particulars of this incident afford a beautiful exam- 
ple of mutual politeness equal to any thing in our own 
refined days. Abraham is represented as weeping over 
the companion of many years, and although he stood on 
the ground which had been assured to his family by a 
better bond than any human compact could confer, he 
attempts not to appropriate even a sepulchre for his wife, 
but respectfully offers to purchase of the natives a burial 
place for his family. Highly venerated by them, the 
afflicted patriarch is solicited to make a choice, and the 
spot is repeatedly pressed upon him without a price. But 
the just and independent spirit of the sojourner, refusing 
to lie under an obligation to strangers, he pays the great- 
est sum intimated as the value of the ground, and receives 
a deed in due form, in the presence of all the people. 

The education of Isaac had ever been the most interest- 
ing concern of Abraham. It now remained to secure him 
from the pernicious influence of a connexion with the 
idolatrous families of Canaan. To this end he called the 
principal servant of his house, one who had the charge 
of all his affairs, and directed him to go down to Mesopo- 
tamia in Syria, the native country of his master, and 
bring thence a wife for his son. " The Lord God of Hea- 
ven," he told this person, " would send his angel before 
him" to guide and prosper him. 



36 ISAAC AND REBEKAH. 

Farmy. Why did not Abraham send Isaac to choose a 
wife for himself? 

Mother. Princes, you know, in our own times, send 
ambassadors to bring their wives from foreign states : 
and Abraham was a prince of high standing. Besides, 
he had been commanded to leave forever the land of his 
nativity, and go into the country which his children should 
inherit. Accordingly, he charges his servant — " Beware 
that thou bring not my son thither again ; but go thou to 
my country, and to my kindred, and bring thence a wife 
for my son Isaac." 

Thus instructed, the servant took ten camels, — "for 
all the property of his master was in his hand" — and valu- 
able presents in silver, and in gold, and in raiment, and 
departed. " As he approached the city, where Nahor, his 
master's brother, resided, he came to a well, about the 
time in the evening when the women of the place came 
thither to water their flocks. Here he waited ; and while 
he was yet praying, that his journey might be prospered, 
and that she to whom he should first speak, might be the 
appointed wife of Isaac — Rebekah, a beautiful young wo- 
man, came out to the well, with a pitcher on her shoulder. 
He requested a drink from her pitcher, which she readily 
gave him, addressing him respectfully, " Drink, my lord, 
and I will draw water for thy camels also." 

Charles. And did this servant allow a young woman 
to perform so menial an office for him ? 

Mother. This servant, you must recollect, was an 
officer of dignity ; he was the steward of all Abraham's 
possessions, and very probably was " that Eleazar of Da- 
mascus," who, before the birth of Isaac, had been selected 
for his master's heir.. Nor was the watering of flocks 
considered in those days a menial employment. The cus- 
toms of different ages and nations are so various, that we 
cannot estimate them by our own. But this practice was not 
confined to remote times : Dr. Clarke, who very lately 
travelled through the Holy Land — the same of which we 
are now speaking, saw the women come out from the 
town of Nazareth, with pitchers on their heads, to carry 
water, and numerous flocks of camels with their drivers 
reposing beside the well. In the neighbouring islands too, 



ISAAC AND REBEKAH. 37 

he found that the porters and water-carriers were females. 
With us it would seem a violation of propriety, for any 
man to look on inactively while a young lady drew water 
for his beasts ; but this traveller seems to have accepted 
the offer of Rebekah as a common civility, whilst he stood 
musing, and wondering whether this meeting were an an- 
swer to his prayer. When the camels had finished drink- 
ing, he presented her with ear-rings and bracelets, inquiring 
whose daughter she was ; and whether there was room in 
her father's house to lodge him and his attendants. She 
replied, that she was the daughter of Bethuel, the son of 
Nahor, and assured him that there was sufficient room for 
the whole of his company. 

Catherine, The very house he was seeking ! how pro- 
vidential the seeming accident ! 

Mother, Abraham's servant so understood it, and in- 
stantly acknowledged the goodness of God, in directing his 
steps to his master'' s brethren ; thus intimating to Rebekah 
whence he came. 

The name of Abraham, her relation, was familiar to 
Rebekah. Delighted to see one of his household, she ran 
to tell her family all that had occurred at the well ; de- 
scribing particularly the grateful piety of the servant. 
Her brother, whose name was Laban, hastened out to con- 
duct him to the house, accosting him by the high appella- 
tion of " Blessed of the Lord," and kindly reproved him 
for standing without, while all things within were ready 
for his accommodation. But when he had entered, and 
refreshments were placed before him, more careful of his 
master's interest than his own convenience, he declared he 
w^ould not eat until he had communicated his business. 
He then recited briefly the history of Abraham, his emi- 
nent condition and great riches ; the birth of Isaac, the 
commission with which he was honoured, to make a suita- 
ble alliance for the heir of so many endowments ; his jour, 
ney into Syria ; his providential meeting and conversation 
with Rebekah. And now, said he, " If ye will deal kindly 
and truly with my master, tell me ; and if not, tell me ; 
that I may turn to the right hand or to the left." Perceiv- 
ing plainly the hand of providence, the relations of Re- 
bekah acquiesced in the divine appointment. 
4 



38 ISAAC AND REBEKAH. 

Presents are universally the accompaniments of a visit 
in the East. They are the tributes of respect to a supe- 
rior, and the expression of kindness to an equal. Accord- 
ing to this custom Abraham's servant was provided with 
sumptuous gifts, of jewels, of gold, and of silver, of wear- 
ing apparel for the bride, and for her family. These were 
brought forth and distributed, and he and his servants, in 
their turn, were hospitably entertained. The next day, he 
requested that they would permit him to depart. The 
mother of Rebekah very naturally desired that their sepa- 
ration might be delayed for a few days, but the man en- 
treated that he should not be detained ; and Rebekah con- 
senting to go, they were affectionately dismissed, with the 
blessings and prayers of her family. 

Fanny, Isaac, I remember, however, went out to meet 
his bride. 

Mother. You cannot say so much, my dear. Isaac, it 
is said, " went out to meditate in the field at eventide." 
Perhaps it was his daily custom, and on no occasion of his 
life was meditation and prayer more suitable than on the 
present, when he was about to receive as a companion, a 
stranger on whose character his future peace was suspend- 
ed. It is not even said that he expected to meet her. But 
as he walked, he lifted up his eyes, and beheld the train. 
Rebekah, discovering him at a distance, inquired who he 
w^as ; and being told that that was Isaac, her destined hus- 
band, she alighted from her camel, put on her veil, and 
prepared to meet him with modesty and respect. The tent 
of Sarah was prepared for the nuptials ; thither Isaac con- 
ducted Rebekah, and she became his wife, (B. C. 1856,) 
and consoled him for the loss of his mother. 

The marriage of Isaac thus happily accomplished, Abra- 
ham took to himself another consort, and had other sons 
besides Isaac and Ishmael. To these he gave portions, and 
sent them away to the countries east of Canaan ; whilst 
Isaac remained with his father, and became the chief heir 
of his temporal possessions ; and to him, as they had been 
to his father, these were abundantly multiplied. He was, 
too, the inheritor of his virtues, for, in his long life, which 
is, however, related with brevity, we hear of but one 
deviation from rectitude. In several circumstances of their 



ISAAC AND REBEKAH. 39 

history, there was a striking resemblance. Driven, like 
his father, by famine to Gerar, the same fear of losing his 
wife, induced Isaac to employ an artifice similar to that 
into which the pious Abraham had suffered himself to be 
betrayed, and similar acts of justice and generosity were 
extended to him by the reigning monarch. Isaac indeed 
did not suffer the inconvenience which resulted to his father, 
of being separated from his wife, but he brought himself 
into the humiliation of being reproved by Abimelech, who 
nevertheless treated him with great respect, extending his 
protection so far as to annex even the punishment of death 
to any injury done to Isaac or Rebekah. 

Isaac had come down to Gerar, in obedience to a divine 
command, accompanied by a repetition of the promise in 
favour of his posterity — that they should possess the land 
of Canaan, and transmit the spiritual blessing to all nations. 

Thus honoured, and thus protected, the patriarch and 
his wife remained near the court of Abimelech until his 
possessions became immensely great. Their flocks were 
innumerable; the produce of their fields exceeded that of 
the Philistines, beyond all calculation, and the servants of 
their household were like the retinue of a prince. Such 
splendour of prosperity at length awakened the jealousy 
of the people, although the conduct of Isaac afforded no 
cause of complaint. They were obliged, therefore, to tell 
him plainly, that they dreaded his increasing power, and 
desired his removal. Nor were they satisfied by his com- 
pliance in returning to Beer-sheba, until Abimelech and 
some of his principal officers had paid him a visit, and 
persuaded him to enter into a permanent treaty of friend- 
ship ; the " Well of the Oath" bearing witness to their 
covenant, as it had done many years before to that of their 
fathers. 

Charles, How many years did Abraham live ? 

Mother. Many more than we do now ; yet the life of 
man had been greatly abridged afler the flood, and was 
still gradually decreasing. Abraham died at the age of 
one hundred and seventy-five years, (B. C. 1810) and his 
father, Terah, had lived two hundred and five. 

Catherine, Lives so very long must have been check-^ 
ered with a great variety of entertaining events. 



40 ESAU AND JACOB. 

Mother. Certainly ; yet it -was not the design of the Holy 
Spirit in giving us a revelation, to detail all the events that 
might entertain us, in any of the lives which it records ; 
but chiefly to show the universal depravity of man, and 
the mercy of God in providing a Saviour ; and the histo- 
rical narrative is pretty generally confined to such parti- 
culars as tend to elucidate this one grand design. Hence 
the annals of a thousand years are contained in a very 
few pages. If a Messiah was to come in due time, it was 
necessary previously, so to point him out, that he should 
be acknowledged. Many of the prophecies, therefore, 
which predicted his advent, delineate such peculiarities of 
character, as apply to no other person that ever lived. 
He was to be of the stock of Abraham, and that this de- 
scent might admit of irrefragable proof, they were sepa- 
rated from all other people, and governed by a polity that 
was calculated to keep them pure. They were not allow- 
ed, for example, to intermarry with their idolatrous neigh- 
bours ; and therefore the servant of Abraham was sent to 
bring a wife for Isaac, from the house of his brethren. 

To return to ou-r narrative. In the fortieth year of his 
age, Isaac was married to Rebekah ; and in the sixtieth, 
his only children, Esau and Jacob, were born (B. C. 1837). 
The boys grew, and displayed very different dispositions ; 
and a very different destiny awaited them. Esau was 
active and bold ; Jacob, mild and affectionate. Esau, de- 
lighting in sports of the field, procured the venison which 
Isaac loved. Dressinoj it with his own hands accordinor 
to the taste of his father, he became his favourite ; while 
Jacob, devoted to the gentler pleasures of domestic life, 
remained near his mother, and secured her almost exclu- 
sive attachment. 

Having lived a century and a half, and become blind 
from age, Isaac thought his days were numbered. Anx- 
ious, therefore, to settle the inheritance on his eldest son, 
he called Esau, and directed him to take his bow, and 
once more procure the dish that he loved, that he might 
eat of it, and bless him before he died. This was over- 
heard by Rebekah, who immediately conceived the design 
of imposing on her husband, and procuring the blessing 
for her favourite. Accordingly, she directed Jacob to run 



ESAtr AND JACOB* 41 

quickly and bring a kid from the flocks, with which she 
would imitate the venison of Esau so completely that his 
father would be deceived. 

Jacob's conscience disapproved of the fraud. He hesi- 
tated. " I shall bring a curse on myself," said he, " in- 
stead of a blessing." But his mother silenced his scruples : 
" on me be the curse," said she — " only obey me." 

Fanny, What else could poor Jacob do when com- 
manded by his mother ? 

Mother, Parents very seldom desire their children to 
do what is obviously wrong. If from ignorance or de- 
pravity, they so criminally disregard their own duty, they 
are not entitled to obedience. Perhaps Rebekah remem- 
bered, though Isaac had forgotten, the prophecy which had 
declared before their birth, that the blessing was entailed 
on the younger ; she ought also to have recollected, that 
He who pronounced it, did not require the unjustifiable 
arts of his creatures to accomplish his purposes. But 
Jacob was probably aided by selfishness to yield to the 
dictate of his mother's affection. Yet we are not unwill- 
ing to plead in his behalf, that he was laudably ambitious 
to succeed to the spiritual inheritance bestowed on his 
family, and which he knew must be transmitted either 
through him or his brother. He was encouraged too, by 
Esau's apparent carelessness of the distinction ; for he 
had before this agreed to relinquish to Jacob for a trifling 
recompense the privileges of an elder brother, even then 
desirable, though they were afterwards augmented, when 
the first-born were required to be particularly devoted to 
the services of religion. He was persuaded, however, to 
disguise his person, and present the dish prepared by his 
fond mother ; nor did he hesitate to assure his father that 
he was " his very son Esau." " God give thee," said the 
patriarch, " of the dew of heaven and the fatness of earth, 
and plenty of corn and wine. Let people serve thee, and 
nations bow down to thee ; be lord over thy brethren, and 
let thy mother's sons bow down to thee ; cursed be every 
one that curseth thee, and blessed be he that blesseth 
thee." Scarcely had this imposition been effected, when 
Esau came in, and presenting his venison, demanded the 

promised benediction. Astonished at the fraud of which 

, 4# 



42 ESAU AND JACOB. 

he had been made the victim, Isaac lamented that a " De- 
ceiver had come," and to him he had given the superior- 
ity ! " I have made him thy lord, said he, all his brethren 
have I given to him for servants, and what shall I do 
now for thee, my son ?" " Hast thou but one blessing ?" 
cried the afflicted Esau, " bless me, even me, also, O my 
father !" " Thy dwelling," replied his affectionate parent, 
" shall be the fatness of the earth, and the dew of heaven 
from above, and by thy sword shalt thou live, and shalt 
serve thy brother." 

Catherine, As Esau had evinced his willingness to 
give up his birth-right, one would not think that he would 
have been much affected by the injury he received. 

Mother. So you would naturally suppose ; but we are 
inconsistent creatures. Though we may seem to disre- 
gard a just claim, yet we do not suffer it to be wrested 
from us with impunity. So it was with Esau ; he was 
highly incensed against Jacob, and even threatened to take 
away his life, when he should no longer be restrained by 
respect for their venerable father. The anxious mother, 
ever watchful for the honour and safety of her favourite 
son, was not long ignorant of his danger. She saw that 
she had brought dissensions into her family, and had even 
armed the hand of one of her children against the other, 
by the indulgence of her unjust partiality, and that some- 
thing must be done to avert the dreaded catastrophe. She 
immediately called Jacob, and telling him of the terrible 
menace of Esau, she besought him to flee for his life ; — 
to go to Haran to her brother Laban, and remain under 
his protection till the anger of Esau should subside, and 
she should send a messenger to conduct him home. But 
how should she obtain the consent of his father, whose 
great age hardly allowed them to hope that he might live 
to see him return ? A plausible pretext was found in the 
recent marriage of Esau, who had grieved them both, by 
connecting himself with the abandoned people amongst 
whom they lived. If Jacob should follow his example, she 
pathetically exclaimed, " what good shall my life do me !" 
Persuaded by her complaints, and remembering that he 
had not himself been permitted to marry a Canaanitish 
woman, Isaac summoned his younger son, and charged 



Jacob's dseam. 43 

him not to take a wife of the people of Canaan ; but to 
go into Syria to the house of Laban, his mother's brother, 
and ask his daughter in marriage. 

This point gained, no time is lost in preparation. 
Anxious now only for the safety of the youth, for whose 
advancement she had hazarded so much, and even sullied 
her own fair reputation, Rebekah provides no sumptuous 
retinue, like that which attended her own espousals. Not 
even one servant of his father's numerous household pro- 
tects the favoured heir — but dejected and alone, he takes 
the road to Padan Aram ! (B. C. 1760.) 

Catherine. This did not look like lording it over his 
brethren. Jacob is obliged to flee from the presence of 
Esau, and leave him in possession of affluence, who was 
to be " his servant," according to the prediction of his 
father ! 

Mother, You may remember, in the case of Ham, that 
prophecies belonged rather to a race of people than to the 
progenitor to whom they may have been spoken. You 
will see as we advance, that the family of Jacob became 
indeed illustrious, and all the promises were verified in 
them. Individuals follow their own imaginations, but all 
conspire to accomplish the designs of Him who cannot be 
disappointed ! The hope of Jacob might indeed languish 
under such discouraging circumstances, immediately suc- 
ceeding to his triumph, but he was soon revived by hap- 
pier prospects; for when he rested the same night, the 
unceasing providence of God was represented to him in a 
vision, by a great ladder, whose foot rested on the ground 
where he slept, and whose top reached the heavens. 
Angels continually passed up and down, on errands of 
mercy to an unworthy world, whilst the voice of " the 
God of Abraham and of Isaac," assured him of protection, 
whithersoever he went ; and confirmed to him, in their 
fullest extent, the promises that had been graciously given 
to them ! 

Awed by a vision so extraordinary, he beheld the place 
with reverence ! " Surely," said he, " this is the house of 
God, and I knew it not !" Then rising early in the morn- 
ing he took some of the stones that had pillowed his 
head," erected a pillar, and consecrated it and himself to 



44 JACOB MEETS RACHEL. 

his Almighty Patron. " If God, said he, " will be with 
me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, 
and raiment to put on, so that I come again to my father's 
house in peace, then shall the Lord be my God." 

Charles* How did Jacob consecrate the pillar ? 

Mother, The text says " he poured oil upon the top 
of it." Anointing the head with oil was an ancient mode 
of consecration or investiture to office. 

Confiding now in his efficient shield, he cheerfully pur- 
sued his journey eastward, till he came to a well near 
Haran. Springs of water are rare in that country, and 
wells, only at considerable distances ; so that wherever 
they are found, they are the resting places of the traveller, 
and the centre of communication for the inhabitants ; for 
there, they all assemble at certain hours to water their 
cattle. That time had not yet arrived ; the stone that 
covered the well, yet lay on its mouth ; but the shepherds 
were collecting, and Jacob embraced so favourable an op- 
portunity of inquiring for Laban, the son of Nahor. 
The answer he received, was not less grateful than the 
water which now refreshed his wearied frame ! They 
knew him, he was well, and the maiden who approached 
with her sheep to the cistern, was Rachel, his daughter ! 

Catherine, Now here is a circumstance so apparently 
trivial as to offer us nothino-, yet its coincidence with a 
custom of the present day is strikingly remarkable. " The 
stone lay on the well's mouth" is incidentally said, and 
modern travellers report that in Arabia they cover the 
wells lest the loose sand which is put in motion by the 
wind should quite stop them up. They wait till the flocks 
are all gathered together before they begin to draw water, 
and when they have finished, the well is immediately 
closed again. 

Mother, Our conversations would be protracted beyond 
our plan, were we to exhibit every fact illustrative of the 
authenticity of Scripture history, yet we- are sometimes 
arrested so forcibly, that we cannot easily pass on. Let 
us now return to our traveller whom we left watch- 

* This vow of Jacob is to be considered as a grateful acknowledg- 
ment of his obligation to serve the Lord — not a conditional promise. 



STORY OF JACOB. 45 

ing with a palpitating heart the approach of his fair 
cousin. 

Laban, the brother of Rebekah, had two daughters. 
Leah, the elder, was hot handsome ; but Rachel, the 
younger, was beautiful ! Overpowered by her unexpected 
appearance — his spirits exhausted by a long journey, of 
nearly five hundred miles, and recollecting his forlorn 
situation, an exile from his father's house, Jacob could 
not restrain his tears, while he told her he was her rela- 
tive — the son of her father's sister ! Then, courteously 
removing the stone, he drew water for her flock, while she 
ran to carry the news of his arrival to her father. Laban 
himself came out to receive him, and the fugitive was con- 
ducted to the house with the tenderest expressions of joy 
and affection ! 

Consoled now by the caresses of his new friends, Jacob 
found himself at home in his uncle's family. He took an 
interest in their affairs, and a share in their labours. Days 
and weeks rolled pleasantly away, but he said nothing of 
the purpose of his visit, until Laban, observing his capa- 
city for business, proposed to give him a salary for his 
services, because, ' it was unreasonable,' he said, * that 
they should be received without a compensation.' He bid 
him, therefore, to fix his own terms, and Jacob required 
no time to deliberate. The charms of Rachel had capti- 
vated his affections, the voice of avarice was silent, and 
love alone preferred her claim : for Rachel — the beautiful 
shepherdess, was all he desired! Seven years would he 
serve, were she the reward ! Unwilling to part with his 
nephew, or to alienate his family from that of Isaac, La- 
ban accepted the offer. 

Time now moved on silken wings — years were but days 
in the estimation of Jacob; he kept the herds of his 
kinsman, and felt neither the noonday sun, nor the mid- 
night dew ; for in the society of Rachel, every toil was 
delightful ! Seven years were completed, and he claimed 
his reward. Laban prepared for the wedding. The neigh- 
bours were invited, and the banquet was spread. But a 
cruel disappointment awaited the lover ; for the deceitful 
Laban, favoured by the eastern custom of covering the bride 
with a long veil, united him to Leah, instead of Rachel ! 



46 STORY OF JACOB. 

Charles. Then the imposition that Jacob had practised 
on his father, was now returned on his own head. 

Mother, Yes. But we do not choose that others should 
do unto us as we do unto them ; and Jacob accordingly, 
grieved and indignant, complained of the cheat. He had 
served for Rachel ; why then was Leah, the disagreeable 
Leah, imposed upon him? They who commit injustice 
are seldom without an excuse, and the crafty Syrian had 
one at hand. It was not their custom, he said, to give 
away the younger daughter before the elder ; but seeing 
that poor Jacob had given his heart wholly to Rachel, 
another seven years' servitude might obtain her also. No 
price was too great to obtain the object of his affection ; 
and another period of bondage was readily undertaken by 
the devoted lover. 

It is not, however, understood by commentators that the 
reward of his constancy w^as withheld until the stipulated 
service was rendered. The circumstances of their subse- 
quent history require that Rachel should have been given 
to Jacob immediately upon his agreeing to serve another 
seven years, and acknowledging Leah publicly, by " ful- 
filling her week," which is supposed to mean the celebra- 
tion of the marriage festivities, for a week. 

Fanny, Was it lawful for Jacob to marry two sisters ? 

Mother, It was never lawful for any man to have more 
than one wife at a time. The will of the Creator is une- 
quivocally declared in the formation of one man and one 
woman at the first. Reason easily deduces the same, and 
the testimony of the Messiah is to us conclusive. But the 
patriarchs were not so clear in the knowledge of their duty 
as we are ; besides, they were unhappily surrounded by 
Heathens, into whose vicious practices they were some- 
times betrayed. Their deviations are faithfully recorded, 
to show us that the best of men were imperfect. Jacob 
was certainly a pious man, yet he committed several ac- 
tions that cannot be justified. He not only married both 
sisters, but while they yet lived, he took two other wives. 

Jacob seems to have remained contentedly with Laban 
many years after his marriage ; for we have no intimation 
of a desire to return to his country, till he was the father 
of eleven sons and one daughter. He then began to think 



STORY OF JACOB. 47 

of settling his family in the land which was ultimately 
to be their inheritance. But when he communicated his 
intention to his father-in-law, the latter would not consent 
to his desire. Experience, he said, had taught him, that 
the blessing of heaven attended the labours of Jacob. The 
cattle had increased to a multitude under his careful hand ; 
and now if he would yet remain in his service, whatsoever 
he required should be his. Persuaded by this tempting 
offer, Jacob proposed to receive for his wages a certain 
share of the flocks committed to his charge. The terms 
were accepted, and he removed with his family several 
days' journey from the dwelling of his father-in-law, and 
attended his charge with assiduity. As wealth accumu- 
lated around him, the jealousy of Laban's sons was pro- 
portionably excited. They saw a stranger growing rich 
on their patrimony, and forgetting the long and faithful 
service by which he purchased his right, they instigated 
their father to treat him with coldness. 

About the same time, in a dream, he was commanded 
to return to his native country ; a step which he knew 
would be opposed by Laban, who had manifested so re- 
peatedly his anxious desire to convert to his own advantage 
the temporal blessings so abundantly bestowed upon Jacob. 
To compel his continuance in Mesopotamia, violent mea- 
sures might perhaps be adopted — even the seizure of his 
wives and their children, should his intention to depart be 
communicated to his father-in-law. A secret removal 
would prevent inconvenient collisions — and to obtain the 
acquiescence of Leah and Rachel, when he informed them 
of the mandate he had received, he expatiated on the ser- 
vice's he had rendered to their family, and the ingratitude 
and treachery he had experienced. The sisters had been 
made sadly sensible of the avaricious disposition of their 
father ; they now saw the alienation of his affections, and 
declared their readiness to submit to the divine command. 
• Catherine. Their simple mode of life was favourable 
to the execution of their plan ; they were not encumbered 
with the multifarious articles of household furniture indis- 
pensable with us^ 

Mother, A very few utensils, and those of primary 
necessity, supplied the wants of Jacob's family. Their 



48 STORY OF JACOB. 

wealth consisting chiefly in cattle and servants, was easily- 
put in motion ; so that the Euphrates was passed, and 
three days' journey performed, without interruption. But 
the march of so large a cavalcade could not be conceal- 
ed ; Laban heard of it, and immediately pursuing, he 
overtook them encamped on Mount Gilead, and warmly 
expostulated with Jacob for having carried off his daugh- 
ters, and his grandchildren, without allowing him to 
dismiss them with paternal embraces, and with feasting 
and music, agreeably to their customs. It was still in 
his power, he said, to injure him, but he would abstain, 
because he had been warned by God, not to touch his 
servant. 

Although Laban had affected to mingle kindness with 
his censures, this last acknowledgment was to Jacob a 
conviction, that he did not owe his safety to the voluntary 
forbearance of his father-in-law : he therefore recited the 
labours and sufferings he had endured, the unjust treat- 
ment he had received, and declared plainly that he had 
departed in silence, because he had apprehended the loss 
of his family, had he permitted them to take leave. The 
acrimony of their mutual upbraidings, however, at length 
gave way to tender recollections ; and, afler they had 
agreed to separate in peace, they built a pillar of stones 
on the Mount, as a memorial of their friendship. 

Charles. I am impatient to know how his brother Esau 
received him. I hope he had forgiven him during his long 
absence. 

Mother, Jacob had now been twenty years in exile, 
and seems to have held no correspondence with his father's 
house : for he was ignorant of any change in his brother's 
disposition towards him, and still dreaded his presence. 
To appease him, therefore, and to signify his own penitence 
and submission, he sent messengers before him to Mount 
Seir, the dwelling of Esau, to apprise him respectfully of 
his approach ; and was greatly distressed when returning 
they told him that his brother was coming to meet him 
with four hundred men. Uncertain of his fate, yet fearing 
the worst, even the sacrifice of his wives and his children, 
he prepared to defend them : he divided his company into 
two bands ; that if one should perish, the other might es- 



STORY OF JACOB. 49 

cape. Then, solemnly calling upon the God of his fathers 
to deliver him from his enemies, he acknowledged his guilt 
and unworthiness of all the mercies he had received — he, 
who had gone out with " his staff in his hand," and was 
now returning with abundant possessions ! 

The next morning he took from his flocks a munificent 
present for Esau, and sent it before him commanding his 
servants to deliver his gift in the lowliest language, and 
to say, " thy servant Jacob is behind us." The night fol- 
lowing, his Almighty Benefactor again appeared to him 
— again renewed his promise of protection — and gave 
him a new name, that of Israel^ — a word which imports 
peculiar honour. Still suffering in his reproving con- 
science the just punishment of his former duplicity, when 
he came in sight of Esau, he arranged his family in 
order, to meet the hostile company, as he supposed ; placing 
his beloved Rachel and her son Joseph, behind the rest — 
and then advanced bowing himself seven times to the 
ground. But how great was his joy and surprise to find 
himself in the arms of a reconciled brother, shedding 
tears of love and pardon on his neck ! His Leah and his 
Rachel were now introduced — the little ones were pre- 
sented — and the gift which Esau had considerately declined, 
because he already possessed more than enough, was 
again pressed, and finally accepted. The now happy 
Jacob, in his turn, declined the offer of his brother's 
attendance on his journey. His servants were then offer- 
ed to assist the more delicate of the train, and wait upon 
the children. But the friendship of his brother was all 
that Jacob required, and he civilly refused to put him to 
any further trouble. So they parted in perfect amity. 
Esau returned to his dwelling at Mount Seir, and Jacob at 
length arrived in safety in the land of his nativity. 

Fanny, It is a little strange that Jacob was so willing 
to dispense with his brother's company on his journey, 
considering his own anxiety and Esau's kindness. 

Mother. In this interview, although the behaviour of 
Esau was kind, his brother was perhaps not satisfied of 
its sincerity, and did not therefore feel very easy in the 



Israel, one who prevails with God. 



50 STORY OF JACOB. 

presence of his four hundred attendants. Under this im- 
pression, he might naturally wish for an immediate sepa- 
ration. 

At a place called Shalem, a city of Sichem, Jacob first 
erected his tents. Some time afterwards he was com^ 
manded to remove to Bethel, (the sacred spot where God 
had appeared to him when he fled from Esau,) to build an 
altar and to dwell there. At Ephrath, (afterwards Bethle- 
hem,) on this sorrowfjl journey, he buried Rachel, (after 
she had given birth to Benjamin, her second son,) and 
gratified his steady affection by erecting a monument to 
her memory. 

Before he left Shalem, he called on his wives and his 
servants to deliver up all the household gods, they had 
brought with them from Mesopotamia, and there he buried 
them, resolving to perform the vow he had made, that the 
" Lord should be his god." 

Charles, What do you mean by household gods ? 

Mother. A sort of tutelary idol retained by the hea- 
thens in their houses, under the vain imagination, that 
they derived protection and prosperity from their presence. 

Fanny, You tell us, mother, no more of the venerable 
Isaac or Rebekah. Did they not live to receive the fugitive ? 

Mother, Isaac saw him return ; his death is recorded 
soon after, (B. C. 1716) at the age of an hundred and 
fourscore years. Of Rebekah we hear no more, although 
the death and burial of Deborah her nurse, one of the 
females who attended her from her father's house, is men- 
tioned about this time. 

Whilst all these things were transacting, the interests 
of Esau had not been neglected. Promises of temporal 
blessings had been given to him, and they were liberally 
verified. Finding his gentile connexions displeasing to his 
parents, he married a daughter of Ishmael, his kinsman. 
By these several wives, he had a numerous posterity. 
They became wealthy and powerful. Mount Seir, on the 
east and west of the Dead Sea, was at first their habita- 
tion. Thence, they extended by degrees through the 
western parts of Arabia Petrea, quite to the Mediterra- 
nean ; and there we find them many ages succeeding, 
under the name of Edomites, or Idumeans. 



STORY OF JOSEPH. 51 

The Red Sea, or Arabian gulf, is said to take its name 
from Edom, or Esau, which signifies red — because his de- 
scendants inhabited its borders. 

We come now to the beautiful story of Joseph, which is 
familiar to every one. We cannot however omit it, because 
it is intimately connected with the history of Israel. 

Catherine, No matter how often it is repeated, mother. 
I have never read any thing so deeply interesting. 
, Mother, It is impossible to surpass the divine relation 
of the historian, nor could it be abridged without an in- 
jury to his unaffected simplicity, unless the mantle of 
Moses should again conceal the human hand ! I touch it, 
therefore, with unaffected diffidence, and must be content to 
relinquish the embellishment of many inimitable strokes 
of noble eloquence, and continue briefly our narrative 
through the principal events of that patriarch's life. He 
was the favourite child of his father, and, most probably, 
because he was the most amiable. For it would seem 
more likely that Benjamin, the Benoni,* bequeathed with 
the last breath of his beloved Rachel, should engage the 
partial fondness of the bereaved husband. But he loved 
Joseph m.ore than all his other children, and excited their 
jealousy by imprudently displaying his affection. 

Accustomed as they were to consider the elder, as en- 
titled to superior honours, they could not behold Joseph 
distinguished by a garment of curious texture, the mark 
of his father's peculiar favour, without envy and dislike. 
But Joseph was destined to be more nobly distinguished 
by wisdom and virtue, to fill a station of eminence, and 
distribute relief to a suffering community. 

Intimations of his extraordinary fortune were given to 
him in two dreams, which in the innocency of his heart, 
he related to his family. " We were binding sheaves to- 
gether in the field," said he, at one time, " and my sheaf 
arose and stood up, and your sheaves stood round about ; 
and made obeisance to mine." And at another, " I thought 
the sun and the moon, and the eleven stars, made obei- 
sance to me." 



^ Benoni, " the son of my sorrow ;" the name given by his mother 
at the moment of her death. 



52 STORY OF JOSEPH. 

Catherine. This designation of their number was too 
plain to be misunderstood, particularly by those who, en- 
vying him, might be watching for occasions of complaint. 

Mother. Even his fond father felt the implication, and 
rebuked his seeming arrogance. " Shall I," said he, " and 
thy mother, and thy bret^hren, indeed, come to bow down 
ourselves to thee ?" But the prediction sunk deep in his 
mind. 

Jacob, who had been himself preferred to an elder bro- 
ther, might very naturally have anticipated something 
more than the casual play of imagination in the dreams 
of his younger son ; and brothers who might each have 
been flattering themselves with the promised blessing, now 
seemed to behold the object of their previous ill-will in- 
vested with their rightful honours. Like Esau, then, they 
determined to remove him from the possibility of supplant- 
ing them, and before he had passed his seventeenth year, 
an opportunity occurred to execute their atrocious plan. 

They were shepherds, and tended their flocks, some- 
times in one place, sometimes in another, occasionally 
changing for the benefit of pasturage. They were now 
supposed to be at Shechem, considerably distant from the 
vale of Hebron, the dwelling of the family, and had pro- 
bably been a good while absent, as their father became 
anxious to hear from them. Unsuspicious of any danger 
to Joseph, whom he had kept at home, he sent him to visit 
his brothers, and bring him intelligence of their welfare. 
When Joseph arrived at Shechem, he was informed by a 
stranger, of whom he inquired, that they had removed to 
Dothan. Thither, therefore, he followed them ; and when 
they saw him approaching, and thought of his superior 
endowments, and aspiring dreams, they saw the moment 
they had waited for, and proposed to put him to death, 
and deceive his father by some plausible tale. 

Reuben, the eldest son of Leah, was not of the council, 
but he overheard the shocking plan. Moved by compas- 
sion for his aged parent, he contrived to save the life of 
the helpless youth, by persuading his brothers rather to 
confine, and leave him to perish in the field, than stain 
their hands with his blood. To get him out of their way 
at any rate, being their object, they adopted Reuben's plan, 



STORY OF JOSEPH. 53 

and cast him into a deep pit, after having stript him of his 
coat of many colours. 

This barbarous act concluded, they sat down to refresh 
themselves, regardless of their unhappy brother, whom 
they had just left to starve. 

Whilst they were yet eating and drinking, a caravan of 
Ishmaelitish merchants, carrying balm and spices to Egypt, 
appeared ia sight. They dealt also in slaves, and now the 
avarice of these unnatural men, most happily suggested 
the sale of Joseph, rather than the unprofitable guilt of 
putting him to death. Accordingly, they disposed of him 
to the traders, for twenty pieces of silver. Reuben, his 
advocate, had been absent during this last transaction. 
Returning to the pit, to conduct him in safety to his father, 
and finding him not, he ran in great consternation to his 
brothers, lamenting the sad accident. Instead of openly 
defending him against their violence, he had weakly con- 
descended to preserve him by a stratagem, and now that 
he was lost, how should he return to his father ! What 
could he now do? He could only unite with the more 
guilty, in devising a plan to conceal the whole. They 
killed a kid, and staining the coat of Joseph, they carried 
it with affected simplicity to their father, and asked if he 
could certainly identify it ! 

The fond father knew at once the coat of his darling 
child, his own distinctive gift, and the conclusion was in- 
evitable ; " an evil beast hath destroyed my son, I will go 
mourning to my grave !" Absorbed in grief, he wrapped 
himself in the mourning garb of sackcloth, nor could the 
efibrts of his children or his friends, alleviate his sorrow. 

Catherine, How must envy have hardened their hearts, 
when they could be insensible to the tears of their aged 
sire ! 

Mother. Let this affecting example, my children, be a 
beacon to warn you against the least approach of such a 
baneful passion. These deluded men were gratified with 
the present success of their barbarous scheme ; but they 
reflected not on the anguish they were preparing for them- 
selves. (B. C. 1729). 

Meanwhile, their unoffending brother was carried by the 
traders into Egypt. His engaging countenajjce would 
5 * 



64 STORY OP JOSEPH. 

readily procure a purchaser, and he became the property 
of Potiphar, an officer in the king's guard. Potiphar was 
a discerning man : under every disadvantage he discovered 
the extraordinary talents of Joseph, and though but a youth, 
a stranger, and a slave, to his management he committed 
all his affairs. Ten years he continued in this subordinate 
situation, conducting himself with unvarying prudence, 
and enjoying the utmost confidence of his master. All 
the house of Potiphar was blessed for the sake of his He- 
brew servant — the verification of whose auspicious vision 
seemed already to dawn, — when a cloud intervened, and 
obscured for a time his ascending glory. Though Potiphar 
saw no fault in Joseph, he suffered his esteem to be sud- 
denly subverted by the misrepresentations of an abandoned 
wife, and degrading him from all his employments, he cast 
him into the prison of the guard house ! Here, too, Joseph 
obtained the reverence that his virtues deserved; The 
keeper was probably acquainted with the true character 
of the slandered Hebrew, and had seen the smile of Provi- 
dence illumining his captivity. Assured, therefore, of his 
fidelity, he gave him the charge of his fellow prisoners. 

Among others, two officers of Pharaoh, his chief baker, 
and chief butler, who had offended their master, were con- 
signed to his care. These men were observed by Joseph 
one morning, when he visited them, to appear remarkably 
dejected. He inquired the reason, and was told that they 
had respectively been disturbed by foreboding dreams, and 
there was " no one in the prison to interpret them." He 
requested them to tell him their dreams, and piously inti- 
mated that God, who alone had the power, would impart 
the design ! The dreams were related, and the unhappy 
baker was informed, that " in three days the king would 
hang him on a tree," but to the more fortunate butler, he 
predicted his restoration to his office ; and he made use of 
the opportunity to bring his own cause before the king ; 
beseeching his fellow prisoner to remember him when he 
should again deliver the cup to Pharaoh. " For indeed," 
said he, " I was stolen out of the land of the Hebrews, and 
here have I done nothing to deserve a dungeon." 

Elated by such reviving hopes as the young prophet 
had infused, the measured days passed not on so rapidly 



STORY OF JOSEPH. 55 

with the expectant of royal favours, as they did in the sad 
reckoning of the sentenced criminal, who dreaded the ar- 
rival of the appointed hour ! It came, however. It was 
the birth-day of Pharaoh, and the last of the poor baker's 
existence ; for on that day he was hanged, while, in strict 
consonance also with the prediction, the cup-bearer was 
reinstated ; but the enlightened messenger, the virtuous, 
yet reviled servant of Potiphar, was forgotten ! 

Charles. Oh barbarous ! could the butler be so very 
ungrateful? 

Mother, He was unkind, and even unjust, rather than 
ungrateful. The prophet was in no wise the author, or 
even the instrument, of his deliverance. He had indeed 
relieved him from oppressive apprehensions; for in a des- 
potic government like that of Egypt, where the will of the 
monarch was the only rule, no man can estimate the mea- 
sure of his punishment, however light his offence. But 
he had seen the wisdom and virtue of Joseph in the prison, 
and knowing that he was the victim of injustice, it was his 
duty to advocate his cause, when he was himself restored 
to favour. 

Two years afterwards the monarch himself was thrown 
into great consternation by a singular dream, and his ma- 
gicians and soothsayers were summoned in vain to declare 
the mystery. No plausible conjecture ocurred to their 
minds, all was doubt and anxiety, and now the careless 
butler remembered Joseph, and reproached himself He 
hastened to his master, and informed him that he might 
find in the royal prison a young Hebrew, a servant to the 
captain, who could interpret dreams, and confessing his 
own guilty negligence, he related the occurrences that had 
displayed the inspiration of Joseph. These were joyful 
tidings to the humbled king, and Joseph was brought out 
as quickly as he could change his garments, and fit him- 
self to appear in the royal presence. " I have dreamed a 
dream," said Pharaoh, " and I have heard that thou canst 
interpret it." With the same humility with which he had 
answered his fellow prisoners on a similar occasion, as- 
suming nothing to himself, Joseph replied, " God shall 
give Pharaoh an answer of peace." 

" In my dream," resumed the king, " I saw seven fat 



56 STORY OF JOSEPH. 

cattle come up out of the river, and feed in a meadow, and 
seven others, so poor, so ill-favoured, as I never saw in all 
the land of Egypt, came after them, and devoured the fat 
cattle. And again ; I saw seven ears of corn come up 
on one stalk, full and good ; and other seven, withered, thin, 
and blasted by the east wind, sprung up after them, and 
devoured the seven good ears — and the magicians are not 
able to declare the meaning.'-^ 

Fanny, If dreams were once so full of meaning, why 
do we wholly disregard them now ? 

Mother, Because we have now an ample revelation 
containing all that it is necessary for us to know of the 
future, and all that we require to direct us for the present. 
Before that was written, various means were used to in- 
struct mankind. Amongst these were dreams; which, 
though superstitiously observed by the orientalists, who 
were much addicted to emblems and signs, were often made 
subservient to the decrees of Providence. Pharaoh, on this 
occasion, was happily submissive to the divine suggestion ; 
and listened attentively whilst Joseph expounded the mys- 
terious vision. 

" God," said he, " hath showed Pharaoh what he is 
about to do. Seven years of great plenty shall bless the 
whole land of Egypt ; and afterwards seven years of fa- 
mine shall so consume it, that the abundance shall be for- 
gotten. And because these things shall surely come to 
pass, let the king avail himself of this gracious communi- 
cation, and appoint a suitable person to lay up corn in the 
plentiful years, to keep the people alive during the famine 
that shall follow." 

" Can we find," exclaimed the delighted king, " such an 
one as this, in whom is the spirit of God ? He to whom 
such high knowledge is imparted, is the most wise, and 
most proper to be set over the kingdom." Then taking a 
ring from his own hand, and putting it on that of Joseph 
(B. C. 1715)—" Thou," continued he, " art ruler of all my 
people — only in the throne will I be greater than thou." 
Then turning to his servants, he commanded them to array 
Joseph in sumptuous apparel, to seat him in the second 
chariot in the kingdom — and proclaim before him, " Bow 
the knee !" Still further to promote his honour and happi- 



STORY OF JOSEPH. 57 

ness, he gave him in marriage an Egyptian lady — Ase- 
nath, the daughter of Potipherah, a priest of On. 

Fanny. Then these people worshipped idols, though 
they acknowledged the God of Joseph ! 

Mother. Believing in a plurahty, tRey thought them 
not incompatible. Here, you see, they admitted the power 
and knowledge of one Supreme — yet we know that they 
were addicted to the basest idolatries. 

Elevated now to the second dignity in the empire, and 
invested with powers to execute his benevolent purposes, 
Joseph went throughout the provinces of the empire, pre- 
paring storehouses, to lay up the surplus food of the plen- 
teous years. They came, according to his foresight, and 
the earth produced her fruits in immeasurable abundance, 
and in every city the corn of its district was carefully 
stored. 

The seven years' famine also arrived, and the perishing 
multitudes cried to Pharaoh for bread. To Joseph every 
thing was committed, and he opened his stores and sup- 
plied them according to his discretion, and the treasury of 
Pharaoh was filled with gold. 

But the famine w^as not confined to Egypt ; the adjacent 
countries were equally afflicted , and when they heard that 
the Egyptians had provided against ^ the general scarcity, 
they crowded thither for food. 

(B. C. 1717.) Amongst those that presented themselves 
on this momentous occasion, came ten of the sons of 
Jacob, and prostrated themselves to the ground before 
the governor of Egypt — little imagining that he whom 
they now reverenced was their banished brother ! 

Catherine. How could they possibly have forgotten 
him ? One would think that remorse alone would have 
kept him alive in their memories. 

Mother, They had not forgotten him — their cruelty to 
him had penetrated their minds, as we shall presently see : 
but now they were occupied with more immediate cares. 
— Besides, his person was altered with the progress of his 
years. To the bloom of his beauty was added the maturity 
of manhood ; nor had they thought of looking for him 
amidst the splendour of a court, and invested with the 
power of a sovereign. But he recollected them, and now 



68 STORY OF JOSEPH. 

saw the accomplishment of his prophetic dreams. Thrown 
thus into his power, and petitioning for bread for themselves 
and their families, his gentle nature forbade retribution. 
He thought of his aged father — he thought of Benjamin, 
his younger brother — and, to conceal the yearnings of his 
heart, he charged them abruptly with coming to see the 
poverty of the country ! They disclaimed the ignoble pur- 
pose ! " They were," they said, " twelve brethren, the 
sons of one man — that the youngest remained at home 
with his father, and another was not / '^ and to buy corn 
for their families alone were they come." He affected to 
question their integrity, and, threatening to punish them 
as spies, he threw them into prison. Coming to them after 
a few days, he proposed that they should prove the truth 
of their statement by bringing their youngest brother into 
Egypt; but he would keep one of their number, in the 
prison, an hostage for their return. 

Overpowered by these painful circumstances, appealing 
to their awakened consciences, they b»oke out into lamen- 
tations, and bitterly reproached themselves, even in the 
presence of Joseph, whom they did not imagine understood 
them, for he had hitherto employed an interpreter. " Veri- 
ly, we are guilty concerning our brother ; for we saw the 
anguish of his soul when he besought us, and we would 
not hear ; therefore is this distress come upon us !" 

" Did I not say to you," cried Reuben, " Do not sin 
against the child, and ye would not hear ? therefore, now, 
his blood is required !" 

These mutual upbraidings shook the fortitude of Joseph ; 
his heart relented, and he turned from them to conceal his 
tears. 

But still forcing his gentle nature to keep up the suspi- 
cion he had assumed, he continued to treat them as spies. 
" Prove yourselves true men," said he, as soon as he could 
command his voice to speak, " by bringing your youngest 
brother to me" — then singling out Simeon, and binding 
him before their eyes, he dismissed the remaining nine, 

* This form of expression was probably used to avoid the direct 
assertion of Joseph's death, which tliey could not certainly affirm. 



STORY OF JOSEPH. 59 

directing his servants to provide them amply with every 
thing necessary for their journey. 

Leaving Simeon, therefore, to reflect on the retributive 
justice of providence which had thus imprisoned him in 
the very country to which he had sent his pleading cap- 
tive brother — they were obliged to return home. Greatly 
distressed, however, by the apparent cruelty of the gover- 
nor, and dreading to meet their abused parent, they were 
still more perplexed, when, on the evening of the first 
day's journey, one of them, on opening his sack to get 
provender for their asses discovered the same bundle of 
money which he had given to the steward of Egypt for 
corn ! Fearful that divine vengeance had now indeed 
overtaken them, they said one to another, " What is this 
that God has done to us ?" But how aggravated were their 
terrors, when, arriving at home, and in the presence of 
their father, they emptied their sacks, each man found his 
parcel of money secretly returned ! Compelled to account 
for the absence of Simeon, they were obliged to relate all 
that had befallen them ; and to add the cruel injunction of 
the viceroy, that Benjamin should come to verify their 
story and deliver Simeon. "Me," cried the afflicted 
parent, " ye have bereaved of my children. Joseph 
is not, and Simeon is not, and ye will take Benjamin 
away ; all these things are against me." " Slay my two 
sons," replied Reuben, confident of the probity of the 
Egyptian prince, notwithstanding the problematical deten- 
tion of Simeon, " if I bring him not to thee ; deliver him 
into my hand, and I will bring him to thee again." But 
entreaty was vain — Benjamin, the only remaining child 
of his lamented Rachel, he would not hazard on so long a 
journey. " My son," said he, " shall not go down with 
you, for his brother is dead, and he is left alone : if mis- 
chief befal him by the way, then shall ye bring down my 
gray hairs with sorrow to the grave." 

Catherine. Poor old man ! I never read his pathetic 
lamentation without tears. Still, I cannot help blaming 
him for refusing to send Benjamin to release Simeon, who 
ought to have been equally dear to him. 

Mother, I am no apologist for parents who make un- 
reasonable discriminations amongst their children ,- indeed 



60 STORY OF JOSEPH. 

they are seldom observed, where all the children of a 
family are equally dutiful. In this case we may allow 
something to the enfeebling effects of old age and peculiar 
circumstances. Necessity, however, soon wrung, from 
Israel a reluctant consent. Their provision was exhaust- 
ed, and he was obliged to call upon his sons : — " Go again, 
buy us a little food." Judah, less tender than Reuben, ^ 
declared they would not go without Benjamin ; " for the 
governor," said he, " did solemnly protest that we should 
not see his face without our youngest brother." Pressed 
now on every side, the suffering father exclaimed, " Why 
dealt ye so ill with me as to tell the man ye had yet a 
brother ?" They answered, that he had questioned them 
so closely, that they could not conceal it ; nor had they 
any motive for endeavouring to do so, for they could not 
imagine that he would say, ''bring your brother down." 
And they continued to urge him by every consideration 
of tenderness for them and their little ones, of duty to 
himself, and the impolicy of a longer delay, to commit 
Benjamin to their care, — pledging themselves with affec- 
tionate solemnity for his safety. " Go then," cried the 
distracted patriarch, " if it must be so, take of the best 
fruits in the land a present to the man, and double money 
in your hand, and the money that was returned in the 
mouth of your sacks, carry it again in your hands ,* per- 
adventure it was an over-sight. Take also your brother, 
and God Almighty give you mercy before the man, that 
he may send away your other brother and Benjamin. If 
I be bereaved of my children, I am bereaved." With 
these affecting words he dismissed them, and they hasten- 
ed into Egypt, and to the presence of Joseph, who, when 
he saw that Benjamin was with them, directed his steward 
to prepare an entertainment, and bring these interesting 
strano^ers to his house at noon, avoidino^ himself for the 
present any conversation with them. Alarmed by this 
unexpected honour, and connecting it with the mysterious 
circumstance of the money returned in their sacks, they 
sought the steward, and anxiously exculpated themselves 
from any knowledge of that obnoxious act ; in confirmation 
of which, they had brought the money again with them, 
and had added other sums to obtain a further supply of 



STORY OF JOSEPH. 61 

corn, the single object, they again asserted, of their first 
visit. The good-natured steward relieved their excessive 
apprehensions by acknowledging, that he had himself re- 
stored their money, and encouraged them to hope that 
Providence had yet some especial favours in store for 
them. He then liberated their brother Simeon, and 
brought them all into Joseph's house where they were to 
dine, — gave them water to wash their feet, and other re- 
freshments, very grateful after their long journey. 

Charles. Let me take this opportunity to ask the rea- 
son of that ancient custom of giving travellers water to 
wash their feet ; we should think it an awkward piece of 
civility now. 

Mother. We do not require it. Our convenient boots 
and shoes were not known to the people who practised 
that courtesy. They wore sandals, which exposed the 
upper part of the foot to the dust. Washing the feet and 
bathing the whole body are so necessary to health as well 
as comfort, that it becomes a religious rite in very hot 
climates. But I will not detain you from the meeting of 
Joseph with his brethren. 

Fanny, Yes, I am impatient to return to that eventful 
dinner. 

Mother. No explanation took place at this second 
meeting, for the purposes of Providence were not yet 
completed. Every thing that occurred was calculated to 
excite wonder and reflection ; especially the singular 
notice that was taken of Benjamin ; for Joseph not only 
graciously accepted their present, and asked affectionately 
for their father, " the old man of whom they had spoken ;" 
but seeing a new face among them, he gently inquired, 
"Is this your younger brother? God be gracious to thee, 
my son," was all he could articulate ; and hurrying from 
them to his chamber, he gave vent to his tears. When 
his agitated feelings were in some measure tranquillized, 
he washed his face, and assuming an air of indifference, 
met his family and guests. 

Three tables were prepared ; one for the governor of 

Egypt, another for his eleven brothers, and a third for the 

nobles who were admitted to his society, and who could 

not submit to the abomination of eating with the Hebrews. 

6 



62 STORY OP JOSEPH. 

Charles. Dear mother, your narrative so often e»coun* 
ters the customs or prejudices of the ancients, of whom I 
am always anxious to learn what I can, that I am tempted 
to interrupt you. Pray tell me why these people could 
not eat together 

Mother, Because the Hebrews, who at that time made 
no distinction in articles of food, would eat the flesh of 
animals held sacred by the Egyptians ; and the abhorrence 
of the latter for such a profanation would not permit them 
to sit at table with those who committed it. 

But though offensive in this particular, the strangers 
were treated with extraordinary civility. Arranged care- 
fully in the order of their birth, they received each a por- 
tion from the governor's table ; but Benjamin's was five 
times the quantity of any of his brothers. This singular 
attention amazed them ; but as they saw no immediate 
occasion of alarm, they enjoyed the present moment in 
feasting and mirth. Early the next morning they com- 
menced their journey homeward laden with provisions as 
much as they could possibly carry. But scarcely had 
they lost sight of the city, when they were overtaken by 
the very steward who had seemed so studious of their 
comfort, and abruptly reproached with having returned 
evil for good, in that they had stolen the golden cup of 
his master ! Confident in their innocence, and seeing only 
^in this disgraceful charge some new oppression of their 
mysterious persecutor, they fearlessly inquired, how they, 
who had brought back the money discovered in their 
sacks on a former occasion, which they might have con- 
cealed and retained, could now be suspected of an action 
they abhorred? And to evince their indignant sincerity, 
they added, " let him die with whom the cup shall be 
found." The terms were accepted, and the baggage 
immediately examined ; beginning with Reuben's and de- 
scending to Benjamin, when lo ! in the sack of the latter, 
the goblet was found. 

Fanny. Alas ! Had he stolen it indeed? 

Mother, O no — it was placed there secretly by Joseph's 
direction, who intended by these trials to bring them to a 
sense of their guilt. Their conviction had seemed yet 
incomplete ; but now overpowered entirely by the dreadful 



STORY OF JOSEPH. 63 

result of their own stipulation, they saw the hand of God 
taking vengeance for their brother's blood. In awful sus- 
pense they returned to the presence of Joseph, and pros- 
trating themselves at his feet, they exclaimed, " what shall 
we speak, or how shall we clear ourselves? God hath 
found out the iniquity of thy servants ; behold we are my 
lord's servants, both we, and he with whom the cup is 
found." 

" God forbid," returned he, " that I should do so : the 
man in whose hand the cup is found, he shall be my ser- 
vant, as for you ; get you up to your father in peace. 

This determination v/as the climax of their sufferings. 
To see the sorrow they had once wantonly brought upon 
their father by tearing from him his favourite, renewed in 
the loss of Benjamin, they could not endure. Judah, 
therefore, encouraged by the amiable deportment of Joseph, 
approached him, and deprecating his anger, he prayed to 
be heard. He then went on to rehearse with the simple 
eloquence of heartfelt grief, the whole history of their 
coming into Egypt. He painted the anguish of his father 
for the loss of Joseph, his best beloved child, his subse- 
quent tenderness for Benjamin, the only remaining son of 
their mother, and his excessive unwillingness to trust him 
out of his sight. Nor did he forget indirectly to appeal 
to the generosity of the governor, by reminding him that 
the unhappy Israel would not have been brought into this 
dilemma but for his own rigid inquiry, — " have ye yet a 
brother?" and his refusal to let them have corn except 
their younger brother came down. " Suspecting no dan- 
ger," he continued, " he had readily become the surety 
for his safety ; and now that the liberty of Benjamin was 
thus inexplicably forfeited, he would pay the penalty in 
his stead, for he could not return and behold the anguish 
of his father." 

This pathetic speech of Judah, not one word of which 
can be omitted without losing a significant expression, was 
admirably adapted to affect such a man as Joseph ; his 
firmness was conquered — the tide of tender emotions 
could no longer be restrained — and hastily commanding 
every one except the culprits to leave the room, he ex- 
claimed, " I am Joseph — does my father yet live!" Amaze- 



64 STORY OF JOSEPH. 

ment, joy, and shame, overpowered his brethren. Silence, 
the most profound, could alone declare the tumultuous 
passions which mingled in their bosoms. He saw them 
unable to speak, and generously encouraged and comforted 
them — " Come near, I pray you," said he, " I am Joseph, 
your brother, whom ye sold into Egypt ; be not grieved, 
therefore, nor angry with yourselves that ye sold me 
hither, for God did send me before you to preserve life." 
Seeing them incredulous, and pitying their confusion, he 
continued to assure them, " haste ye, go to my father and 
say to him, thus saith thy son Joseph — God hath made 
me lord of all Egypt ; come down unto me, tarry not, and 
I will nourish thee, for there are yet five years of famine ; 
thou shalt dwell in Goshen, with all that thou hast, lest 
thou come to poverty. Your eyes see, and the eyes of 
my brother Benjamin see, that it is my mouth that speak- 
eth unto you ; tell my father of all my glory in Egypt, 
and all that ye have seen, and haste and bring down m.y 
father hither." The generous effort to relieve his troubled 
brothers was now exhausted. Language refused any 
longer her aid ; but throwing his arms around his beloved 
Benjamin, and by turns embracing them all, tears, the 
natural eloquence of unutterable tenderness, expressed the 
rest ! 

Tranquillity and confidence by degrees succeeded these 
impassioned feelings, and they conversed affectionately 
together. In the mean while, the report of this unexpect- 
ed meeting had gone abroad. The violence of Joseph's 
agitation had been observed by his servants ,* every one 
rejoiced in the happiness of their benefactor; and Pharaoh 
himself, embracing every opportunity to testify his high 
regard for him, gave immediate command that carriages 
should be prepared to bring down the father of Joseph and 
his whole family into Egypt. " Regard not your stuff," 
said the liberal prince, " for the good of all the land of 
Egypt is yours." 

Preparations were accordingly made, and the sons of 
Israel, laden with provisions and presents both for him and 
themselves, returned to their father with the' tidings of 
Joseph's existence and elevation in Eojypt. 

Fanny, These tidings would seem almost as insupport* 



DESCENT OF ISRAEL INTO EGYPT. 65 

able to Jacob as the former had been, though from an op- 
posite cause. 

Mother, His feeble spirits fainted under the excess of 
surprise and joy, and only the evidence of the carriages 
provided by Joseph and the munificent mx)narch whom he 
served, to transport him with all that he had, could con- 
vince him that such great and unexpected blessings were 
his. " It is enough, (said he) ; Joseph nry son is yet aUve 
—I will ofo and see him before I die." 

o 

Fanny, I suppose Israel intended to return to the land 
of promise, and die there. 

Mother, He might reasonably have cherished such a 
hope, because he had not yet attained, as he afterwards 
told Pharaoh, to the years of the life of his fathers : but 
he certainly knew that his posterity should return. Yet 
knowing also that they should be afflicted " in a land 
wherein they were strangers," this sudden removal of his 
whole family to a foreign country, was calculated to fill 
his mind with anxious reflections on the probable conse- 
quences of an event so remarkable. 

Arriving at Beer-sheba, on his journey into Egypt, Is- 
rael was forcibly impressed w4th the kindness of Provi- 
dence to his family. Here was " the Well of the Oath," 
the memorable spot where Abraham and Isaac had re- 
ceived the homage of the king of Gerar. Here, then, he 
stopped to offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving to Him who had 
so marvellously restored his lamented son ! After this 
act of duty, he was encouraged in a vision to prosecute 
his journey without fear ; for in Egypt His presence would 
be with him, and, there, he should become " a great 
nation." 

Catherine* Was this then the beginning of that bond- 
age so famous in the history of the children of Israel? 

Mother, Chronologists date the affliction of Abraham's 
posterity " in a land wherein they were strangers," from 
his leaving Chaldea, his native country — but the " bondage'^'* 
in Egypt, so familiar to every reader of the Bible, began 
at this time ; " yet their residence in that country com- 
menced (B. C. 1706,*) under the most flattering auspices. 

* See Note, p. 25. 
6* 



66 DESCENT OF ISRAEL INTO EGYPT. 

They were met on the way by Joseph in his chariot, and 
in the arms of his long-lost son, the full soul of the happy 
father received the fruition of earthly bliss ! " Let me 
now die," said he, " since 1 have seen thy face." When 
tears and embraces had relieved the unutterable feehngs 
of both, Israel and five of his sons were conducted to the 
king. The venerable patriarch was seated in the royal 
presence, and questioned of his age and occupation ; and 
when he answered " thy servants are shepherds," the land 
of Goshen, a section rich in pasturage, was assigned to 
them, and the flocks of Pharaoh were committed to their 
care. 

Two years of the famine were spent, when Israel came 
with his family into Egypt. During five more, it continued 
with such distressing severity, that all the riches of the 
inhabitants came into the royal treasury to procure the 
means of subsistence. When their money was exhausted, 
they brought in their cattle, of every description, and ex- 
changed them with Joseph for bread. Still the earth with- 
held her fruits, and the starving people crowded around 
him ; " Shall we die before thine eyes ? — take us and our 
land — we will be servants to Pharaoh, only give us 
bread." 

But this upright minister would not aggrandize even the 
prince who had elevated him to the second place in the 
kingdom, to the prejudice of his fellow subjects ; but em- 
ployed the plenitude of his power for the advantage of 
both. He improved the condition of some by removing 
them to more convenient habitations, and generously re- 
stored four-fifths of the lands of all ; retaining but one for 
the king ; and this regulation continued afterwards for 
ages. One-fifth of all the territories of Egypt belonged 
to the king, excepting the lands of the priests, who were 
wholly exempted from tribute. 

Catherine, How old was Jacob-when he entered Egypt ? 

Mother, A hundred and thirty years — and he lived 
afterwards seventeen in Goshen ; respected by the Egyp- 
tians, and happy in a flourishing family. His long and 
checkered life was now drawing to a close. Sickness and 
exhausted nature had confined him to his bed, when Joseph, 
whose attendance at the court of Pharaoh kept him neces- 



ISRAEL BLESSES HIS SONS. 67 

sarily at some distance from Goshen, and who added to his 
other excellencies that of duteous attention to his father, 
having heard of his declining state, came immediately to 
see him. Revived by the sight of his beloved son, and 
animated by the desire to communicate some things of mo- 
ment, the venerable patriarch raised himself up in his bed, 
and collected all his remaining strength for an interesting 
conversation. 

With pious recognition of the extraordinary Providence 
which had directed his way, and supported him in distress, 
he was recounting to Joseph some of the most affecting 
incidents of his life, when indistinctly perceiving the youths, 
Manasseh and Ephraim, whom Joseph had brought with 
him to visit their grandsire, he inquired who they were. 
" They are my sons (returned Joseph,) whom God hath 
given to me in this place." " I had not thought to see thy 
face," exclaimed Israel, recollecting the mournful years 
when he thought his darling was lost to him forever, — '' I 
had not thought to see thy face, and lo ! God hath shown 
me also thy children !" 

Then blessing Joseph in the name of " the God who 
had fed him all his life long," he embraced the children, 
and laying his right hand on the head of Ephraim, pre- 
ferring him before Manasseh, v/ho was the elder, he added 
these remarkable words, " The Angel which redee?ned me 
from all evil, bless the lads — and let my name be named 
on them, and the name of my fathers, Abraham and Isaac, 
and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the 
earth." 

Fanny. What do you understand from the words 
which you call remarkable in the blessing of Ephraim and 
Manasseh ? 

Mother. They are worthy of remark because they 
show the faith of Jacob in the better part of the blessing 
bestowed on his posterity ; for exemption from all temporal 
evil, was no more the lot of Jacob than of any other hu- 
man being. "Few and evil (said he to the Egyptian king) 
have been the days of the years of my pilgrimage." The 
most exquisite sufferings to vvhich the life of man is sub- 
jected, had proved the faith of Jacob. Exiled in his youth 
from his country, and the caresses of his fond mother ,* 



68 ISRAEL BLESSES HIS SONS. 

flying from the vengeful hand of an only brother whom he 
knew he had injured ; disappointed in a love which he had 
confidently cherished, and defrauded of the reward of his 
servitude ; his inmost soul afflicted by the loss of his fa- 
vourite child, though mercifully kept in ignorance of the 
unnatural hand which inflicted the blow, grieved on an- 
other occasion by the perfidious cruelty of Simeon and 
Levi ; and deprived at length by death of his long-loved 
Rachel ! — these were the sorrows of that pilgrimage which 
was now coming to a peaceful end. One duty yet remain- 
ed to be performed — one more important scene to fill the 
variegated drama. 

Abraham, you may remember, was first selected to be 
the depository of the special Blessing: Isaac after him, 
was preferred to Ishmael, the elder of his two sons ; and 
Jacob rather than Esau, of the sons of Isaac, to transmit 
it to their posterity. Jacob is now, in like manner, to hand 
it down to the chosen individual amongst his numerous 
children 

On his death-bed, therefore, he called them together, and 
whilst he blessed them severally, expatiating on the various 
fortunes that should in future days befall them, he distin- 
guished Judah as " He whom his brethren should praise, 
to whom his father's children should bow down." 

"He with whom the Scepti^e of Israel should remain 
till Shiloh should come, and to whom the gathering of the 
people should be." 

Fanny. Do the subsequent scriptures show the accom- 
plishment of these prophecies ? 

Mother, Beyond all question, as several learned com- 
mentators have demonstrated. You will read some of their 
works, I hope, with great satisfaction. They are highly 
worthy of your attention, because they evince the truth 
of sacred writ, by showing how exactly the fortunes of 
Jacob's children corresponded with his predictions. This 
is the only view in which they are interesting to us, that 
pronounced on Judah alone excepted. That being the 
grand link in the chain of our story, demands a brief ex- 
planation. 

The Hebrew word which is rendered sceptre in our text, 
has several other senses in that language. In the same 



DEATH OF ISRAEL. 69 

chapter it is translated tribe, which interpretation would 
more exactly apply to the prophecy of Jacob. The sceptre 
of royalty did indeed proceed from Judah, and it remained 
with him through a long period of the Israelitish history. 
The regal dignity, in its fullest sense, was taken from them 
when Judea was subjected to the Babylonians, Persians, 
Greeks, and afterwards to the Romans. But the tribeship 
of Judah did actually remain till Shiloh came, although 
the other tribes of Israel had been broken and scattered, 
long before that event. 

The word Shiloh is likewise variously interpreted, but 
however understood, it is agreed by almost all commenta- 
tors, both ancient and modern, to mean the sent — or the 
Messiah " whom the Father hath senf* — to whom the na- 
tions were gathered, and in whom all the spiritual promises 
to Israel will be accomplished. 

From this formal division by Israel, the political govern- 
ment of tribes took its rise ; Ephraim and Manasseh, con- 
stituting two, in the place of their father Joseph, according 
to the will of the patriarch. The dying exile also took an 
oath of his sons, especially of Joseph, as possessing chiefly 
the power to execute his will, to carry him into Canaan, 
and bury him with his fathers, in the sepulchre which had 
been purchased by his ancestor when he was a stranger in 
that land, for the burial-place of Sarah ; where Abraham 
and Isaac, and Rebekah and Leah, had also been laid. 
Accordingly his remains were carried with great pomp 
into Canaan, (B. C. 1689,) attended by all the males of 
his family, and a great retinue of noble Egyptians, and 
laid in the cave of Macpelah. 

Fanny, Deprived now of their natural protector, and 
wholly in the power of Joseph, his brothers would begin 
to fear that they might be sacrificed to his just resentment, 
no longer restrained by reverence for their common parent. 

Mother, There you misapprehend his character. This 
illustrious man was always superior to circumstances. 
The fear of God was the governing principle of all his 
actions. His amiable nature was mehed to tears when 
they sent messengers to deprecate his anger, and afterwards 
came, and prostrating themselves, presented his departed 
father's request, that he would forgive them ! " Am I," 



70 CHARACTER OF JOSEPH. 

said he, " in the place of God ? It is His to punish, 
and mine to obey His will. He sent me before you into 
Egypt to save much people alive ; now, therefore, fear not ; 
for I will nourish you, and your little ones." 

The useful life of Joseph was protracted to the length 
of an hundred and ten years ; and under his affectionate 
care, his family grew and flourished. (B. C. 1635.) In 
his last hours, he reminded them that they were to return 
to their own country, and enjoined them to carry up his 
bones and deposit them with those of his ancestors. His 
unmerited kindness to them had secured their obedience, 
and they preserved his body for that purpose, by embalm- 
ing it after the manner of the Egyptians. From the sa- 
cred records we learn no more of this celebrated ruler, but 
profane writers have said, that the Egyptians continued 
long to venerate the name of their benefactor. 

To the fascinating power of such an assemblage of en- 
dowments, without the allo3/ of a single vice, as much 
as to the affecting vicissitudes of his fortune, we may as- 
cribe the pleasure with which we contemplate the beautiful 
story of Joseph. No human invention has hitherto ex- 
ceeded in variety and interest the surprising scenes of his 
life. Nor has all the imagery of poetry ever touched the 
heart like the pathos of its simple unadorned style. The 
bursts of nature's own emotions on several occasions are 
altogether inimitable ! and the speech of Judah to the un- 
known governor of Egypt, particularly, is a finished model 
of successful pleading. Severely tried in a variety of cir- 
cumstances, Joseph was faithful in all. The lustre of his 
piety augmented the splendour of a court, and illumined 
the gloomy cells of a prison. Diligent and submissive in 
adversity — active and beneficent in prosperity — as a states- 
man — a son — and a brother — he was prudent, dutiful, and 
generous ; diffusing blessings while he lived, and erecting 
for posterity, a monument of transcendant virtue. 



(71 ) 



EXODUS 



Mother. Many of the facts recorded in the narrative 
of Moses are corroborated by corresponding stories in the 
writings of profane authors ; but they shed no light on the 
train of events which brought the Israelites into the state 
of servitude and affliction in which we find them at the 
opening of the book of Exodus. 

This name, Hke that of Genesis, indicates the subject 
of the book — our young Grecian can give us a literal 
translation of the word. 

Charles. Exodus is derived from the two Greek words, 
ex, from ; and odos, the way ; and signify the going out 
or departure. 

Mother, Yes ; and therefore applied to this book ; be- 
cause it begins with an account of the Israelites going out 
of Egypt. 

iVt the conclusion of Genesis and death of Joseph, more 
than half a century before the period on which we are now 
entering, we left them in great prosperity in the district of 
Goshen, enjoying the protection of a benevolent monarch, 
and the recompense of those advantages he had derived 
from the wisdom of that statesman. 

From that time to the present, there is a chasm which 
we have no means of supplying ; but must be content to 
take up the concise account of Moses — that " a new king 
had arisen who knew not Joseph." That is, he had not 
personally known him, but he probably knev/ that the am- 
ple revenues of Egypt were obtained by the sagacious 
measures of that excellent minister. When this Pharaoh 
came to the throne, he found the Israelites a very nume- 
rous people — his subjects indeed, but bound by no common 
tie to his interest. They were separated from the natives, 
not only by their dwelling in the district of Goshen, but 
by customs peculiar to themselves, and by the worship of 
a Deity unknown to them. Six hundred thousand men in 



72 BIRTH OF MOSES. 

number, situated on the border of Arabia, they presented 
a convenient ally to that lawless power, in her predatory 
irruptions into Egypt. To all these alarming circumstances 
should a spirit of insurrection be added, the Hebrews would 
be too formidable to be dispersed. *' They are more and 
mightier than we," said this new king to his people. " Let 
us be wise betimes, and break down their power, by hard 
labour and severe treatment." 

Fanny, One would think that the people, remembering 
their obligations to Joseph, would refuse to aid in perse- 
cuting his brethren. 

Mother, The generation that had been preserved by his 
wisdom and foresight, had passed away. If their children 
had been instructed in the duty of gratitude, a despotic 
government might render it of no use to the poor Hebrews. 
But they had a more efficient friend ; that divine Provi- 
dence which had great things in store for the sons of Abra- 
ham, was " on their right hand and on their left," — they 
were supported in their affliction, and they continued to 
grow and prosper. 

But what was to be done ? This powerful people must 
be crushed — the murder of their helpless infants would at 
least arrest the progress of a growing population : accord- 
ingly, by a royal edict, every male child of the obnoxious 
strangers was, from the date of that instrument, consigned 
to the river Nile — whilst the less dreaded females were al- 
lowed to live. Various are the means by which tyranny 
may depress, and at length triumph over its devoted sub- 
jects ; but here its purpose was defeated by the excess of 
its cruelty, for the agents it employed would not concur in 
a measure so repugnant to the common principles of hu- 
man nature. They rather secretly assisted in the preser- 
vation of the Hebrew children, and the approving smile 
of Heaven visibly rewarded the benevolent individuals who 
ventured to disobey the despot. 

At this gloomy period of Hebrew history, Moses, their 
deliverer and legislator, was born. (B. C. 1571.) He 
was the son of Amram, and Jochebed, both of the house 
of Levi, the third son of Israel. Something more than 
commonly promising in the countenance of the child, or 
some happy premonition in the heart of the mother, en- 



PRESERVATION OF MOSES. 73 

couraged her to disregard the mandate of the tyrant, and 
for three months she succeeded in concealing him. When 
concealment was no longer possible, she carried him pri- 
vately to the Nile, and laid him on its sedgy border, 
placing his little sister* at a convenient distance to bring 
her intelligence of his fate. Here she knew the inhabit- 
ants were accustomed to walk, and hoped that some com- 
passionate hand might yet be directed to save him ! 

To this eventful spot on the very same evening his 
guardian angel brought the Egyptian princess Thermutis, 
attended by her ladies. As they rambled on the shore, a 
cradle half hid in the rushes arrested her eye — curiosity 
was awakened, and the smiling infant was discovered. 
The cruel policy of her father left no doubts of the parent- 
age of the foundling; yet she resolved not only to pre- 
serve, but to adopt him. The little girl, who had now 
ventured into the group, offered to bring her a nurse, and 
the fortunate boy was soon committed to the care of his 
own mother — who could now receive him with more joyful 
gratitude than she had dared to indulge when he was first 
given to her arms ! Thus this celebrated individual was 
rescued, by means seemingly the most accidental, from 
impending death, to fulfil the prediction delivered to Abra- 
ham ; to lead his brethren out of Egypt — to sustain them 
forty years in a wilderness — to institute a body of laws 
for their government, and finally, to record the whole 
wonderful transaction with the pen of inspiration 

But notwithstanding the happy Jochebed was now sure 
of a powerful protector for her child, she did not venture 
to assert her right to detain him, but restored him when he 
was weaned, to the princess, and accepted a compensation 
for the delightful service she had performed. By this lady 
he was called Moses, because she drew him, out of the 
water — and by her care he was educated in the learning 
of Egypt. 

Egypt was, at that time, the residence of the arts — the 
seat of science. Science had not, indeed, made much 
progress in the world ; but all that she had done was, 
perhaps, known to that country. 

* Miriam, who is ofleix mentioned in the succeeding history. 

7 



74 MOSES FLEES TO MIDIAN. 

Catherine, It is very remarkable that Moses should 
have been not only preserved, but even qualified for his 
work by the very people who were endeavouring utterly 
to destroy his nation. Was he ignorant in his youth of 
his connexion with that people 1 

Mother, During his earlier years it is probable he 
thought himself to be in reality what he was called, " the 
son of Pharaoh's daughter ;" for while he was nursed in 
the house of his father, he could not have been made ac- 
quainted with the dangerous secret of his adoption by that 
princess. But he had learned it some time before his for- 
tieth year. At that time we find he had such a decided 
predilection for his brethren, that seeing, as he passed 
along, an Egyptian and a Hebrew engaged in a quarrel, he 
promptly took part with the latter, and slew their enemy. 

This act of violence immediately became public, and 
endangered his life. The next day, attempting to inter- 
pose between two of his own countrymen, whom he found 
contending angrily together, he was abruptly repulsed 
with the question, " who made thee a Judge over us — wilt 
thou kill me as thou killedst the Egyptian yesterday ?" — 
This contemptuous rejection of his offered mediation at 
once suggested to Moses, the necessity of providing for 
his own safety. He saw the publicity of his rash deed, 
and the indisposition of his brethren to protect him from 
the vengeance of Pharaoh. If at this time he was informed 
of the part he was to act in the emancipation of Israel, he 
saw that they were not yet prepared to cooperate with him. 
Retirement from Egypt, for a time, was then the obvious 
dictate of prudence, and Midian, contiguous, and inhabited 
by the descendants of Keturah, the last wife of Abraham, 
presented a convenient retreat. Thither he fled, and 
found a happy asylum in the house of Jethro, the priest 
or the prince of that country, in consequence of having 
assisted his daughters in waterino^ their flocks at a well 
where he had rested in his way. In process of time, he 
connected himself with this family, by marrying one of 
the daughters, and seems to have lived contentedly with 
them during the life of the king of Egypt, and until an- 
other Pharaoh had ascended the throne. 



MOSES SENT TO PHARAOH. 75 

Charles. I observe, mother, that you call all the kings 
of Egypt by the name of Pharaoh. 

Mother, That was a common appellation by which 
their sovereigns were distinguished in those days, and, in 
the Egyptian language, signified king. He who now 
wore the crown v/as hardened in iniquity, and the conse- 
quent suffering of the Israelites became intolerable. Their 
prayers and complaints ascended to the God of their 
fathers, and the period approached when they should be 
delivered, and their unfeeling oppressors receive a just 
retribution. 

(B. C. 1491.) Preparatory to this grand event, whilst 
Moses was tending the flock of his father-in-law, on a 
memorable day, at the foot of mount Horeb, he was sur- 
prised by the appearance of a Bush in flames ; and con- 
tinuing to burn, yet not consumed ! While he gazed on 
the phenomenon, a voice proceeding from it, commanded 
him to put off his shoes, for he stood on holy ground.* 
" I am," continued the speaker, "• the God of thy fathers, 
of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob — I have seen the af- 
fliction of my people, and am come down to deliver them. 
I will send thee unto Pharaoh that thou mayest bring my 
people out of Egypt to a land flowing with milk and 
honey." Astonished at the presence of the Deity, and 
humbled by a sense of his own insignificance, yet encou- 
raged by the gracious communication, Moses exclaimed, 
" Who am I that should go to Pharaoh and bring forth the 
children of Israel out of Egypt ?" — " Certainly I will be 
with you," said the great Supreme ; " and thou shalt say 
to the children of Israel : I am (that is, v/hose existence 
is not derived) hath sent me unto you, and when thou hast 
brought them forth, thou shalt worship in this mountain — 
Go, gather the elders of Israel together, and say to them, 
' The Lord God of your fathers has visited you, and will 
bring you out of affliction, into a land flowing with milk 
and honey ;' and they shall hearken to thy voice, and ye 
shall say to the king, ' The Lord God of the Hebrews hath 
met us, let us go, we beseech thee, three days' journey 

*A ceremony in the East to this day; in some circumstances a 
token of respect, equivalent to uncovering the head among us. 



76 MOSES GOES TO THE ELDERS. 

into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice unto the Lord 
our God.' I am sure he will not let you go, and I will 
smite Egypt with all my wonders, and after that he will 
let you go.' 

" And that he may believe that the Lord God of Abra- 
ham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent 
thee, cast the rod that is in thy hand on the ground." 
Moses obeyed, and it became a serpent. " Put forth thine 
hand, and take it up," — he did so, — and it became a rod 
in his hand. 

These, and other manifestations of transcendent power, 
ought to have silenced the timid Hebrew, yet, perhaps, 
remembering that his brethren had once rejected his offered 
friendship, he hesitated. "I am not eloquent neither here- 
tofore, nor since thou hast spoken to thy servant, but am 
slow of speech." Nor did he obey till he was reassured, 
that the Lord would be with him, that Aaron his brother, 
'' who could speak well," should be associated with him, 
in the mission to the king, and that he might visit his 
father's house securely, for those who sought his life were 
now dead. 

His fears thus graciously removed, he took his wife and 
his two sons, and immediately began his journey. In the 
wilderness on his way, he was met by his brother, already 
instructed in the great work on which they were about to 
enter ,* and communicated to him the awful interview to 
which he had been admitted, at the foot of Horeb. 

Empowered by supreme authority, and enlightened by 
divine inspiration, a short conference matured their plan. 
They proceeded into Egypt, gathered the elders of their 
people together, and laid before them the command they 
had received, performing in their presence several mira- 
cles, the signs and the seals of their mission. 

Catherine, What kind of an officer was an Elder of 
Israel at that time? — A people completely subjugated, 
having authority at all, seems to be a paradox. 

Mother. Though their condition in Egypt had become 
very discouraging, and might almost preclude every ray 
of hope, yet many of them would doubtless confide in the 
promise, that they should in due time become an indepen- 
dent nation. To this end it was necessary, that they 



DE3IANDS THE LIBERATION OF ISRAEL. 77 

should be held together by some peculiar regulations, 
otherwise they must have been lost in the course of several 
centuries among the natives of that country. These 
would naturally be dictated by the heads of their tribes, 
or principal families, who were, in all circumstances, ho- 
noured and obeyed in ancient times. They are here 
called Elders, and were the representatives of their nation, 
when they acknowledged the goodness of God, in sending 
Moses and Aaron to their relief. 

The acquiescence of the chiefs being secured, the am- 
bassadors repaired to the king, and demanded in the name 
of Jehovah, the God of Israel, the liberation of His peo- 
ple, that they might go into the adjacent wilderness to sac- 
rifice. But the demand was rebellion ! Possessed of abso- 
lute power, and satisfied with his own sufficiency, the king 
of Egypt recognized no authority in the voice of Jehovah ! 
" Who is Jehovah," said the imperious despot, " that I 
should obey his voice V Vainly then did Moses and 
Aaron repeat His command, and urge the necessity of 
obedience — a sacrifice was but a pretext to indulge the 
idleness of the Hebrews, and their advocates were the in- 
stigators of insurrection ! New burdens were, therefore, 
added, and their tasks were increased beyond the possi- 
bility of performance. 

From the circumstance of their being " tasked in making 
bricks" and employed in the "erection of cities," there 
seems reason to believe that this oppressed people were 
now labouring in the erection of the pyramids, those stu- 
pendous monuments of Egyptian greatness. They had 
hitherto been furnished with straw, a necessary ingredient 
with them, in the manufacture of bricks, of which a cer- 
tain number had been required daily at their hands : but 
now they were obliged to gather straw for themselves, 
whilst yet the usual number of bricks was exacted ! To 
enforce the impracticable order, measures of the severest 
rigour were used by the overseers, until the anguish of 
the sufferers broke out into passionate complaints against 
Moses and Aaron. The monarch still deaf to entreaty, 
they saw no prospect of the promised liberation, and in 
the ambassadors of Heaven, only the odious cause of ac- 
cumulated evils ! 
7 # 



1»LAGUES OF EGYPT. 78 

Repeated interviews with the king of Egypt, and reite- 
rated demands for the freedom of the afflicted Hebrews, 
producing nothing but contumely and defiance, the arm 
of Moses was now stretched out and sustained and directed 
by the God of nature ; miracle upon miracle, astonished 
the infatuated monarch, and overwhelmed with distress 
his devoted subjects. Their waters were turned into 
blood, and frogs and vermin infested the whole land. 
Their cattle were swept off by disease, and the people 
groaned under the anguish of loathsome boils. Tremen- 
dous storms of thunder and hail destroyed vegetation, and 
the beasts of the field. Swarms of locusts covered the 
whole face of Egypt ; and impenetrable darkness obscured 
the light of the sun for three whole days ! 

Charles, Did the Egyptians endure all this, without 
interposing for their own relief? 

Mother, They did not. They besought Pharaoh to 
" let the people go." " Knowest thou not yet (said they) 
that Egypt is destroyed?" But they entreated in vain! 
Deceived by the arts of his magicians, who were permit- 
ted to imitate some of these preternatural effects, his proud 
heart was hardened. Sometimes overpowered by the cries 
of his people, and his own aggravated sufferings, he was 
ready to submit to the Hand that inflicted them, and expel 
the people for whose sake it was displayed, with all that 
was required. But again exasperated by seeing the dis- 
trict of Goshen, their habitation, exempted from these 
accumulated horrors, he detained them, and withstood the 
plainest manifestations of the Divine will. 

One judgment remained — one more severe than had yet 
tried the obdurate king. The angel of death stretches 
out his destructive arm over their whole land — and the 
silence of midnight was disturbed by the cries of grief and 
horror ! The cup of anguish is now indeed filled to the 
brim — loud lamentation proceeds from every house, and 
parental love discovers one tangible nerve even in the 
inflexible heart of Pharaoh ; for the heir of his throne is 
laid low, undistinguished among the dying multitudes — 
the first-born of every family, from the palace to the 
prison ! 

Touched on this tender string, he now felt that there 



HEBREWS LEAVE EGYPT. 79 

was a power capable of subduing even him ! And uncer- 
tain where the angel would stay his destroying hand, he 
called hastily for Moses and Aaron, who were employed 
with their brethren in the celebration of a solemn feast, 
and turned them out of his dominion. " Get you forth," 
cried the distracted prince, " from among my people, both 
ye and the children of Israel ; serve the Lord, as ye have 
said ; take your flocks and your herds, and begone, and 
bless me also." 

Charles, Pharaoh then was truly humbled, when he 
would condescend to ask for the prayers of his enemies ? 

Mother, His own heart was still his greatest enemy. 
You will presently see, that his transient submission was 
extorted by his fears alone, and was not the effect of ge- 
nuine faith and repentance. 

Fanny, The feast of which you just now spoke, I be- 
lieve was the Passover ? 

Mother, The feast of the Passover, (of which you 
will hear, when we come to speak of the Mosaical institu- 
tions) was first appointed on that memorable night, and 
handed down to successive generations, as the memorial 
of their deliverance from the " house of bondage." 

Whilst the Hebrews were engaged in this act of obedi- 
ence, they were urged to depart from a place upon which 
every moment of their stay seemed to bring additional 
evils. Before the day appeared, therefore, without time 
to prepare food for their journey, they were obliged to set 
out. This deliverance, however, was not altogether unex- 
pected. The gracious promise given to their fathers, had 
led them to look for the appointed time. In full confi- 
dence of its arrival, the body of Joseph had been embalm- 
ed and kept in a coffin, and was now, agreeably to their 
engagement, carried with them out of Egypt. (B. C. 
1491.) 

Charles, Their coffins must have been of more dura- 
ble materials than ours ; otherwise, they could not have 
removed the remains of Joseph, perhaps a century after 
his burial. 

Mother, Nearly a century and an half had elapsed, 
since his death. I follow our common translation in using 
the word cojln, but we must not associate with it the idea 



80 PHARAOH PURSUES THE HEBREWS. 

of a receptacle like our own. It is perfectly well known, 
that the sepulchres of the ancients were vaults hewn with 
immense labour out of the solid rock, and so imperishable, 
that they are shown at the present day, among the curiosi- 
ties of the Holy land.* 

The " land of Goshen," the habitation of the Israelites, 
lay near the north-western termination of the Red Sea. 
Hence, they might, by an easy journey, have reached 
their promised land, but much was yet to be done before 
they were prepared to enjoy that repose. 

Born and educated in slavery, and amongst an idola- 
trous people, they necessarily partook of the moral de- 
basement incidental to that unhappy condition. To ame- 
liorate their manners, therefore, and qualify them for the 
high and conspicuous rank they were about to assume, 
as an independent nation, and God's peculiar people, they 
were led into the wilderness of Shur, and there instructed 
by a constitution framed especially for their government. 

The threatened judgments seem already to have been 
executed, but neither judgment nor mercy had yet subdued 
the desperate Pharaoh. We must now return to our nar- 
rative, and accompany him to his final destruction. 

Though the king of Egypt had so far relented, that he 
had suffered the Israelites to depart, and had even entreat- 
ed them to " pray for him, also" — yet they had scarcely 
left his dominions, when his avaricious soul accused him 
of folly in releasing so numerous a body of profitable 
subjects. 

He had seen that that despised people were the peculiar 
care of an uncontrollable Power ; but had experienced 
too, that He was also a merciful Being, who seemed to 
have been propitiated even by his insincere promises. 
But he might be like the gods of Egypt — a local deity, 
— he might protect his people in Goshen, and abandon 
them in the desert! Thus beguiled to his own ruin, Pha- 
raoh hastily collected his armies, his horsemen, and his 
chariots — a very great multitude, and pursuing the Israel- 
ites, overtook them, encamped by the sea. 

Catherine, Of what sea do you speak ? 

* See Clarke's Travels in the Holy Land. 



PASSAGE OF THE RED SEA. 81 

Mother. By the Sea, or emphatically the great Sea, 
in scripture, is generally understood the Mediterranean. 
But the sea here spoken of, was the Arabian gulf, or Red 
Sea. Instead of passing from its northern point, near 
which the land of Goshen was situated, immediately into 
the promised land, which might have been eifected in a 
few days, the Israelites were directed to proceed along its 
western border, and encamp near a place called Pi-hahi- 
roth. 

Here obstructed by the water on one hand, and by 
mountains on the other, they seemed to offer an easy con- 
quest to the enraged potentate and his mighty hosts. Ter- 
rified and disheartened, they upbraided Moses and Aaron. 
" Did we not say unto thee in Egypt, that it were better 
for us to serve the Egyptians, than to die in the wilder- 
ness ?" 

Catherine. It seems wonderful that this people should 
be discouraged by any dangers, however great, when so 
many miracles had been exhibited, expressly to show them 
that they were under the care of Omnipotence. 

Mother. Nay, more, when they had at the very mo- 
ment a visible emblem of his presence ! for it is said, 
*'the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of cloud, 
to lead them the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to 
give them light." 

When their pursuers came within view, their intrepid 
leader aroused their fainting hope by the assurance, that 
the Egyptians whom they then saw, they should see no 
more forever ; for the Lord of Hosts would fight for them. 
" Bid the people go forward," said their Supreme Com- 
mander to Moses, " but lifl thou up thy rod, and stretch 
thine hand over the sea and divide it, and the children of 
Israel shall go on dry ground through the midst of the sea." 

Moses obeyed, and the '' waters were driven back by 
a strong east wind, which blew all that night, so that they 
passed over in perfect safety ; the divided waters erecting 
a wall on either side ! Meanwhile, their pillar of light had 
removed from before them, and stood between their camp 
and that of their enemies ; illuminating the one, and in« 
volving the other in total darkness ! 

But this last token of divine forbearance was contemned 



82 PASSAGE OF THE RED SEA. 

by the infatuated king, equally with those that had gond 
before. He rushed blindly on, not knowing perhaps, 
whither he went, and was overwhelmed by the returning 
waters, so that of all the dreaded host of Pharaoh, a few 
dead bodies cast up by the waves were all that the morn- 
ing light discovered to the triumphant Hebrews ! 

You remember the prophecy delivered to Abraham in 
the plain of Mamre — that Sarai should be the mother of 
nations — that his posterity should be afflicted in a land 
wherein they were strangers — that they should be deliver- 
ed in the fourth generation — that their oppressors should 
be punished, and " afterward they should come out with 
great substance ;" and here you see the exact accomplish- 
ment. The family of Jacob consisted but of seventy or 
seventy-five persons, when they came into Egypt ; they 
were subjugated, and treated with excessive rigour ; and 
now were brought out, exactly four hundred and thirty 
years afterward, with six hundred thousand men, besides 
women and children ; they came out " with great sub- 
stance," and their oppressors were punished. 

Fanny, What was the breadth of the sea at the place 
of this astonishing passage? 

Mother, The sacred record is silent on that question : 
but some pains have been taken to ascertain it. The place 
is believed to be known, and is said to be two or three 
miles across. 

Fanny, But may not this be satisfactorily accounted 
for on natural principles, without supposing a miracle? 
The Israelites perhaps took advantage of an ebb tide, and 
the Egyptians were drowned in its rising. 

Mother, It is not probable that Pharaoh and his offi- 
cers knew less of the tides of the Red Sea, than did the 
Hebrews : besides, the reflux of the tide would not satisfy 
the words of Moses ; " the waters w^ere a wall on the 
right hand and on the left." But if we are inclined to 
give up the fact because infidels have pronounced it impos- 
sible, we may with equal reason surrender every miracle, 
for they have rejected them all, though established by in- 
controvertible proof. In this case it would be miraculous, 
that a multitude of people should be persuaded that they 
had passed the bed of a sea without wetting their feet ; if 



SONG OF MOSES AND MIRIAM. 83 

they had done no such thing. Even the children, who but 
indistinctly remembered the fact, when they heard it re- 
cited by Moses, and saw it recorded in a book as a perpet- 
ual appeal to their grateful and undivided devotion, would 
naturally inquire about the manner of an occurrence so 
seemingly incredible ; and if they had discovered an im- 
posture, some traces of a refutation would have reached 
us. But any thing like this is so far from appearing, that 
we have traditions of the miracle in the books of profane 
authors. 

Catherine. The people for whose sake it was perform- 
ed would surely be very sensibly affected by their extraor- 
dinary deliverance. 

Mother. They were at the moment, and they celebrated 
the praises of Jehovah, " their strength and salvation," in 
sublime strains, accompanied with instruments of music 
and dancing. The song of Moses, with the chorus of 
Miriam, and the women of Israel, on this memorable occa- 
sion, are recorded in the fifteenth chapter of Exodus. The 
poetry of the Hebrews, of which you have many fine spe- 
cimens in the sacred writings, abounds, like that of all 
eastern nations, with strong and lofty images. It was evi- 
dently written in measured numbers, but whether in rhyme, 
as we generally construct our lines, is uncertain, for the 
original pronunciation of the language has long been lost. 
Khymes, however, are so agreeable to our ears, that I have 
Undertaken to give you this lyric ode in English verse. 
Fanny will read it to us. 

SONG OF MOSES AND MIRIAM. 

Fanny. Begin the sacred dance — the timbrels bring", 

Daughters of Israel, arise and sing. 

To him, my father's God, my strength, the Lord 

Who triumphed gloriously — the praise accord. 

My fortress, and my Saviour, he became, 

He leads to war — the Lord his holy name ! 

Let Jacob's grateful sons prepare a place 

Where he may dwell among their favoured race. 

The people he redeemed, his mercy led 

Victorious, through the sea's exhausted bed. 

The seas are thine ! — Obedient to thy will, 

The rolling waves of Araby stood still. 



84 QUAILS AND MANNA SENT. 

Raised by Jehovah's blast, that awful night 

Beheld the barrier, wave on wave, upright. 

Thy desperate foes pursue the hallowed path, 

Darkness and tempest speak thy wasting wrath : 

The flood returns — proud Egypt's vaunted host, 

Their king — their chiefs — their chariots, all, are lost ! 

Low in the whelming waters of the deep, 

Israel's oppressor, — Pharaoh's armies sleep ! 

The men of Palestine shall trembling hear 

Moab and Edom melt with grief and fear. 

Which of the gods to whom the nations bend 

Can winds and floods to their deliverance send 1 

Glorious in holiness — thy power exceeds. 

In praises fearful — doing wondrous deeds ! 

Thine is the sword and shield — thy own right hand 

Shall lead thy chosen to the promised land. 

To him my strength, my father's God, the Lord, 

Who triumphed gloriously — the praise accord. 

Thou, Lord, shalt bring us to thine heritage. 

And rule — our sovereign king, from age to age. 

Catherine, Our partiality for any essay of yours, mo- 
ther, will certainly decide in favour of your versification. 
I have kept my eye on the text whilst my sister was 
reading, and find that you have not varied in sentiment. 

Mother, It would have been happy for the Israelites 
if such sentiments of pious gratitude had governed their 
whole conduct. But when they had travelled but a few 
days in the desert of Sinai, and began to expei'ience the 
inconveniences and privations inseparable from their un- 
settled condition, they looked back with regret on their 
comparative ease in Egypt, and again assailed Moses with 
the cruel complaint — " You have brought us to die in the 
wilderness." Yet mercies and miracles continued ! — To 
engage their confidence, as well as to provide for their 
real necessities, they were graciously assured that they 
should " continue to behold the glory of the Lord ;" that 
flesh should be given them to eat, and bread from heaven 
should satisfy their hunger. And accordingly in the even- 
ing an immense number of quails alighted round the 
camp ; and the following morning, their bread descended 
indeed from heaven ! A small white substance, " like 
coriander seed, and sweet like honey," as it is described, 



SABBATH CHANGED. 85 

and therefore called Manna, was found covering the 
€arth. 

" This," said Moses, " is the bread which the Lord hath 
given you to eat. Gather of it every man according to 
the number which are in his tent, and let none be kept 
until the morning." Some, notwithstanding, presumptu- 
ously kept the manna over the night, and in the morning 
it was putrid. Moses was displeased at their disobedience, 
and repeated the command, to gather every morning suffi- 
cient only for the day. But on the sixth day, when they 
went out for their daily provision, they found that a double 
quantity had fallen. Greatly surprised, the rulers repaired 
to Moses to report the phenomenon, and to inquire into the 
reason. 

" To-morrow," replied he, " is the rest of the Holy Sab^ 
bath ; take a part of the manna, therefore, and lay it up 
for the ensuing day." They did so, and found that it kept 
perfectly good. Yet not fully persuaded of the fact that 
Moses had communicated, some of the people went out on 
the seventh day to look for manna ; they found none ; but 
received this reproof: "How long refuse ye to keep my 
commandments and my laws ? See — for that the Lord 
hath given you the Sabbath ; therefore he giveth you on 
the sixth day the bread of two days : abide ye every man 
in his place, let no man go out of his place on the seventh 
day." From that time to the period of their pilgrimage 
they were fed with manna. An Omer, a measure some- 
thing less than our gallon, was carefully preserved to show 
to their posterity the miracle that had sustained them. 

Famiy. Why did the people hesitate to believe a cir- 
cumstance so probable as that of distinguishing the Sab- 
bath from a common day ? 

Mother, If the extraordinary quantity of manna had 
appeared on the day previous to the Sabbath they had 
been accustomed to observe, it would seem natural that 
they should at once acquiesce in the command of Moses. 
But the difficulty he experienced, together with the emphatic 
language of the text, have led some of our best comment- 
ators to the conclusion, that a change unexpected to them 
at this time was made. 

The seventh day of the creation being coincident with 
8 



86 MOSES BRINGS WATER FROM THE ROCK. 

the first whole day of Adam's life, he would of course be- 
gin to reckon his week, and his year, on that day ; and 
consequently the day which Christians now celebrate, was 
the Sabbath appointed in Paradise, and continued by all 
people, however widely dispersed, until the Israelites came 
up out of Egypt. From that period, the chosen people 
w^ere to be distinguished and separated from all others by 
their national institutions, some of which seem to have no 
other object. 

The beginning of their year had been changed, when 
the Passover was instituted, from the autumnal to the ver- 
nal equinox, as a memorial of their deliverance at that 
time from " the house of bondage :" and a correspondent 
change is supposed to have been made in the wilderness in 
the beginning of their week, to remove the temptation of 
mingling with the heathens in idolatrous worship. By re- 
moving their Sabbath to the seventh day, the Israelites 
would be engaged in their common occupations on the holy- 
day of their neighbours, and thus be out of the way of 
allurements, which we find did afterwards, in some in- 
stances, entice them from their duty. 

Catherine. Mother, do you think it is immaterial 
whether Saturday or Sunday is kept holy ? 

Mother. The command is to devote to God, in a spe- 
cial manner, one-seventh of our time. That being done, 
the moral nature of the command is answered. 

Let us now return to the Israelites, who, after eleven 
encampments, had come to a place called Rephidim, where 
they found no water. Again they repeated, with additional 
bitterness, their accustomed reproach — " Thou hast brought 
us and our children, and our cattle, up hither to perish 
with thirst." The bounteous hand that had fed them when 
hungry, now supplied them with drink. 

The touch of the rod of Moses brought water from a 
rock, and the copious stream refreshed the remainder of 
their journey. The Pillar of Light seems, from that time, 
to have led the people along its margin, for we hear no 
complaints of scarcity of water, for many succeeding 
years, although they travelled in a dry and barren land. 

All these magnificent events could not be confined to 
the knowledge of the persons for whose correction or re- 



TEN COMMANDMENTS GIVEN. 87 

lief they were originally displayed. Their fame went 
abroad, and Jethro, the prince of Midian, a worshipper of 
Jehovah, came to unite with Israel in homage to their Al- 
mighty Deliverer, — and to restore at the same time his 
daughter, and her sons, who had been sent back to his 
guardianship, whilst Moses was engaged in his perilous 
mission to Pharaoh. 

Remaining with the Israelites some days, Jethro took a 
friendly interest in their affairs, and assisted them by his 
prudent counsel. He saw with concern the incessant la- 
bours of his son-in-law in the government of Israel, and 
suggested the propriety of calling to his aid, inferior magis- 
trates, who might take cognizance of the lesser causes, 
while the greater only should be referred to his own deci- 
sion. And " able men," he added, ought to be selected — 
" Such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness." 
Such were accordingly appointed, rulers of thousands, 
rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens. 
Bread and water, the most imperative demands of nature, 
having been already provided, Moses was now left at 
greater liberty to attend to the great work of legislation, 
for which they were chiefly detained in an inhospitable 
wilderness — and it commenced in the third month after 
their departure from Egypt. 

Encamped in the desert of Sinai, before the celebrated 
mount of that name, the whole congregation were gather- 
ed together, and solemnly reminded that their enemies had 
been signally chastised for disobedience, while they " had 
been borne as on eagles' wings." " Now, therefore," said 
Jehovah, " if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my 
covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure to me, above 
all people — for all the earth is mine." " All that the Lord 
commands we will do," was the ready answer of a people 
unacquainted with their own weakness, and ignorant of 
the purity and ext-ent of the laws about to be proclaimed. 

But when assembled at the foot of Sinai, to. receive on 
a subsequent day the covenant they had not hesitated to 
subscribe, the terrible ensigns of infinite power, and rigor, 
ous joistiee, were exhibited to their view — they shrunk dis- 
mayed from the Divine presence ! Fierce hghtnings 
flashed through the dark cloud that enveloped the mount-^ 



88 VESTMENTS OF THE PRIESTS^ 

tremendous thunderings shook its base — an invisible trum- 
pet sounded, long and loud — and amidst these appalling 
circumstances, an audible voice pronounced the Ten Com- 
mandments, the substance of the Hebrew code, and the 
immutable foundation of all subsequent law. The terri- 
fied people listened with reverence — but entreated that 
Moses might thenceforth be their mediator, and themselves 
be excused from aijain hearin^^ the voice of Jehovah ! 

They were permitted to retire, and their leader alone 
was summoned to ascend the burning summit, to receive 
further instruction ; and forty days this highly honoured 
mortal remained in more intimate communion with his 
Creator than had ever been vouchsafed to man since the 
fall of Adam. 

As the decalogue exacted first the homage due to the 
Sovereign of the universe, so now the medium by which 
that homage should be offered was first appointed. The 
pattern of a tabernacle, or place for public worship, with 
all its apparatus, both for ornament and convenience, was 
exhibited to Moses, and instructions the most minute were 
given him, to construct one of similar form, and of costly 
materials, together with every necessary utensil for offer- 
ing sacrifices. 

Catherine, In what manner do you suppose the 'pattern 
of a tabernacle was exhibited to Moses ? 

Mother. Whether we suppose Moses to have been fa- 
voured with a full revelation of the meaning and end of 
his emblematical dispensation, or, taking the words literally, 
understand that a tabernacle with its whole apparatus was 
represented in vision, on the mount — the words are explain- 
ed, for their meaning is clearly that by this view of the 
pattern he was enabled to institute a corresponding cere- 
monial of worship. 

In this awful interview Moses was commanded also to 
make vestments of a particular form, for Aaron, and for 
his sons, Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar, and 
when they were arrayed, to consecrate them all to the 
service of the altar. 

The habits of the inferior priests were to be of white 
linen, because that material might be kept perfectly clean^ 
and by this elegant emblem, the worshippers were instruct- 



BREAST-PLATE OF AARON. 8fl 

ed in that purity of heart, required of all who approach 
the Sanctuary. 

Aaron, who was constituted the High Priest, was to be 
more splendidly dressed. Several robes, extremely fine 
both in colour and texture, were to conceal his whole per- 
son — a girdle curiously wrought, confined them to his 
waist, and two onyx stones engraved with the names of 
the sons of Israel decorated the shoulders. For his head 
was a mitre, or crown, with a plate of pure gold on the 
forehead, inscribed with the words, HOLINESS, TO 
THE LORD. 

But the most remarkable part of this magnificent habit 
was a Breast-plate vvhose mysterious properties have exer- 
cised the ingenuity of critics. 

Twelve precious stones, set in gold, and engraved each, 
with the name of a son, or a head of a tribe of Israel, 
were placed on its surface — and something which was 
called the URLM and the THUMMIM inserted within. 

Catherine. What wei^ the Urim and the Thummim ? 

Mother, The words Urim and Thummim signify light 
and perfection ; but whether in this place they denote a 
substance within the breast-plate, or whether those ab- 
stract qualities were for special purposes imparted to it, 
we know not. All that the words of Moses enable us to 
discover is, that when the high priest appeared before the 
Mercy Seat, arrayed in his pontifical robes, to ask counsel 
in momentous affairs, the Urim and the Thummim were 
the medium by which the answer was received.* 

Fanny. And what was the design of so splendid an 
ornament as twelve precious stones? 

Mother. Some have supposed, that, containing in the 
engravings all the letters of the alphabet, the superior 
sparkling or occasional protuberance of certain letters, 
might indicate the answer to the inquiry of Aaron. But 
this hypothesis is supported by no evidence from the words 
of Moses. It is probable that no more was meant, than to 
represent by this silent metaphor, the whole congregation 
of Israel, in whose behalf the priest ofiiciated. To my 
mind, this emphatic breast-plate is a beautiful emblem of 

* See Prideaux^s Comiexions. 

8* 



90 GOLDEN CALF. 

a parent ; — almost forgetting his own necessities, he comes 
to the Throne of Grace with the names of his children 
engraved on his heart, and for them he implores counsel, 
protection and pardon ! 

The manner of consecrating the priests — the morning 
and evening sacrifice — were at this interview prescribed, 
and the weekly sabbath again strictly enjoined. And 
here let me observe, that, much as the rigid letter of this 
invaluable institution is now contested, no one precept of 
the moral law is more frequently or imperatively en- 
forced ; — " My sabbaths ye shall keep, that ye may know 
that I am the Lord that doth sanctify you." And lastly^ 
two tables of stone, containing the Ten Commandments, 
" written with the finger of God," were delivered to 
Moses. 

But while the Hebrew chief was thus transcendently 
exalted, the unhappy people of his charge were debasing 
themselves. Already forgetful of the unparalleled benefit 
bestowed upon them, and in open violation of their recent 
engagement, to have " no other God before Him who had 
brought them out of the house of bondage," they had set 
up an idol ; and Moses was hastened by their all-seeing 
Judge, to descend, and witness their merited punishment 
— even their utter extermination — whilst himself should 
be signally exalted ! Solicitous for the glory of that Name 
that had been graciously attached, in the sight of all Egypt, 
to his undeserving nation, rather than his own elevation, 
he ventured to linger in the mount, whilst he implored the 
" God of Israel" not to abandon his people, and thereby 
afford an occasion of exultation to their enemies. 

Returning to the camp he found the whole assembly 
dancing and singing before their idol. Impatient of their 
detention in the desert, and the long absence of their con- 
ductor, they had compelled his brother to make them an 
image of gold, to go before them to Canaan, and had 
proclaimed before it — *' These be thy gods, O Israel, 
which brought thee out of Egypt !" 

Catherine. Did Aaron, their high priest, participate in 
the monstrous defection 1 

Mother. He had not yet been invested with that digni- 
fied character ; but he had been the minister of God, and 



THE TABERNACLE. 91 

ought to have resisted the clamours of a turbulent people, 
whose crime can be but little extenuated, by the charitable 
supposition, that they meant not to impair their allegiance 
to their legitimate sovereign, but merely to erect an ensign 
or standard to go before them ; to which, among a people 
addicted to Polytheism, they had learned to ascribe a sort 
of mystical influence. Moses had been forty days in the 
mount; they saw it involved in smoke, and the " glory of 
the Lord," like devouring fire, on its summit. He might 
have perished in its flame, and left them without a visible 
captain — still their offence was most flagrant, both in its 
nature and circumstances, as we learn unequivocally from 
the signal punishments inflicted — three thousand of the 
principal rebels put to death by the hands of their more 
loyal brethren ! 

On this occasion the illustrious Chieftain gave a noble 
example of his disinterestedness, by intreating, that his 
own life might be accepted as an expiation for the sins of 
his people ; that he m.ight be excluded from the promised 
land rather than that the whole people of his charge 
should be cut off; but a full pardon was granted for all 
except the leaders, on his intercession, and the penitent 
congregation testified lheir gratitude by contributing mate- 
rials for the tabernacle and the vestments of the priests, 
with profuse liberality. Silver and gold, and brass and 
jewels ; threads, spun by the women, of purple, of blue, 
and scarlet, and fabrics of the finest texture were brought 
in till all was completed. 

Charles. There is, I remember, a very long descrip- 
tion of the tabernacle, but I cannot understand it. Will 
you, mother, give us some idea of it ? 

Mother. The directions given to Moses, for constructing 
the tabernacle, were very particular ; they will therefore 
be tedious to you. They were necessarily minute, because 
every part was significant; a general description, how- 
ever, will suffice our present purpose. The tabernacle, 
strictly so called, was a large tent thirty-two cubits* in 
length, and twelve in breadth, divided into two apartments. 
^n the inner one, stood the Ark of the Covenant ; that is, a 

* This cubit was half a yard of our measure, according to Burder. 



92 THE TABERNACLE* 

chest containing the two tables of stone which were given 
to Moses on Mount Sinai ; this was denominated the Most 
holy place. A veil of singular beauty, and impenetrable 
thickness concealed this sacred depository, and excluded 
every creature, except the High Priest. Without the veil, 
in the second division, stood an altar for burning incense ; 
a table, called the table of show bread, and a candlestick 
with seven lamps, of exquisite workmanship, to keep 
a light continually burning. To these two apartments, 
was appended a third, which was called the court of 
the tabernacle, and was an hundred cubits long and fifty 
broad. This court was appropriated to the altar for burnt- 
offerings — the laver or bath, to purify the priests, before 
they went within to officiate, and for the reception of the 
people who waited in prayer whilst their sacrifices were 
consuming. This last was open at the top, the other two 
divisions were covered. The whole was surrounded by 
curtains of rich tapestry, and comprehended under the 
general appellation of the Tabernacle, or, the Sanctuary. 
Staves of wood, overlaid with gold, were prepared to carry 
both the ark and the table, from place to place. 

The table and the candlestick were of gold, and the ark 
was inlaid, within and without, with that precious metal. 
The cover, which was called the Mercy Seat, was of pure 
gold, and over it two cherubim of beaten gold, extended 
their wings ; between them, and over the ark, which con- 
tained the Covenant, the God of Mercy was pleased to 
manifest his presence, and to answer the supplications of 
his people. 

Fanny. A Covenant, I understand to mean a contract ; 
why were the tables called a Covenant ? 

Mother. Because, on them were written the conditions 
on which the Great Supreme, on the one part, had conde- 
scended to promise certain blessings to the posterity of 
Jacob; and they, on the other, had accepted the terms, 
and solemnly promised obedience ; the tables were, there- 
fore, a Covenant, or contract. 

Catherine. The manufacture of all these curious ar- 
ticles would require a considerable knowledge of the fine 
arts. 

Mother. Egypt, the native country of the Hebrews, 



THE TABERNACLE. 93 

possessed all the requisite knowledge in very early times 
— but the sacred furniture was not committed to the pre- 
vious acquirements of the travellers. Several persons 
were expressly named to Moses, and endowed with extra- 
ordinary talents for the execution of the work. 

(B. C. 1490.) Every thing being finished, according 
to the model prescribed in the mount, the sacred sanctuary 
was raised, the veil was suspended, the altars, the table, 
and the candlestick, were fixed in their places, on the first 
day of the second year of their abode in the wdlderness 
of Sinai. The princes of the tribes presented their obla- 
tions — silver and golden vessels, and cattle and herds, for 
the dedication. Sacrifice and incense were offered, and the 
most glorious demonstration of the divine presence attested 
their acceptance. Light, insupportably resplendent, filled 
the tabernacle of Jehovah, so that not even Moses could re- 
main within, while the bright cloud descended, and cover- 
ed the exterior. So long as this authoritative signal 
remained in that position, and ever afterwards, during 
their long pilgrimage, whensoever it was assumed — the 
Israelites rested. When the cloud rose and moved for- 
ward, they followed; their benignant conductor irradiating 
by night, and over-shadowing by day, their trackless 
course through the burning desert of Arabia. 



(94) 



LEVITICUS 



Mother. The sacred tabernacle and its furniture being 
in perfect readiness for the rehgious service of the children 
of Israel, the book of Leviticus proceeds to prescribe its 
ordinances, and the duties of the Levites, its ministers. 
It is chiefly devoted to these details, without the interven- 
tion of much incident. 

Fanmj, We are to have a dull conversation, then, this 
evening ; but pray let me ask, is it necessary that we should 
be made acquainted with a system in which we are wholly 
unconcerned ? 

Mother. If that were the case, I would not ask your 
attention. I have known your seniors in age, my dear, 
commit the same error into which you have fallen ; I would 
rectify that, by showing you our interest in the Jewish 
economy, although I do not intend to be so minute as you 
seem to apprehend. The scheme of salvation is one and 
the same from all eternity, although it is exhibited under 
different dispensations. That gospel which was published 
by the Redeemer of the world — and confirmed by his 
death, was prefigured in emblems, by the ceremonial law 
of the Israelites. They explain and establish one another; 
the analogy has been elucidated by many excellent volumes, 
some of which you will read with more pleasure than I 
can hope to excite, yet we must not pass them in silence. 

The laws of Moses have been divided into three classes, 
Moral, Typical or Ceremonial, and Political. The first 
are of universal and immutable obligation; originally 
given to man, and since found impressed on the heart of 
every creature, endued with reason and conscience— but 
now first delivered in written characters, and on tables of 
intone to denote their permanent nature. The second, in 
shadows too obscure to be fully understood at the time of 
their prescription,— yet sufficiently clear to elicit and sus- 
tain the faith of its subjects,— indicated the pollution and 



CONSECRATION OF THE TABERNACLE. 95 

guilt of every individual, and the one great sacrifice which 
should procure purification and pardon. The third, in 
subserviency to that great end, erected a wall of partition 
between the posterity of Abraham and their Gentile neigh- 
bours, and preserved them, through all the revolutions of 
ages, a separate people. Conformity to its precepts was 
never required of any other people, not even of those who 
resided among them. 

Fanny, I had not supposed that they were so very im- 
portant — we shall thank you for examples of them ; espe- 
cially of the two last mentioned. 

Mother, In the course of our narrative I shall find an 
opportunity of gratifying you. 

The first care of Moses, when he had reared and dedi- 
cated the sanctuary, was to consecrate its ministers. Seven 
days successively, they waited in the outer court ; were 
washed with water, anointed with holy oil, provided for 
that purpose exclusively, and they offered burnt offerings 
in the presence of the whole nation. On the eighth day, 
when the animals which were to be offered as sacrifices 
were killed, and laid in order on the altar, fire, immediately 
from heaven, descended and consumed them ! This was 
an event unexpected by the people, and they hailed it with 
loud acclamations of triumph and praise! No other fire 
being afterwards permitted to be used in the tabernacle, it 
became the duty of the priests to keep this sacred flame 
continually alive. Two of the sons of Aaron, Nadab and 
Abihu, very soon transgressed the divine command, by 
putting " strange fire," as it is termed, into their censors to 
burn incense ; for which offence they were instantly de- 
stroyed by the element which they dared to profane. " Fire 
came out from the Lord, and devoured them." 

Fanny, Were not the people greatly shocked to find 
their priests, whom they had seen but lately consecrated 
by so many solemn forms, transgressing a divine law ? 

Mother, They had a right to expect the most scrupu- 
lous care in the conduct of their ministers, but they would 
discover their error, if they had imagined that solemn 
forms would sanctify the heart, and enable them to render 
perfect obedience. The purification of Aaron and his 
sons by water, and their sin-offerings so oflen repeated, 



96 SIN OF NADAB AND ABIHU. 

were designed to exhibit the holiness of their office, and 
their own utter unworthiness ; but could effect no change 
in them. The sin of Nadab and Abihu, is supposed to 
have been committed in a state of intoxication, as it was 
immediately followed by a command to the priests, to 
" drink no wine or strong drink when they went into the 
sanctuary," lest they should die. Their awful punishment 
was just, and their brethren were forbidden to disfigure 
themselves by exterior signs of mourning — "for the 
anointing oil of the Lord is upon you," said Moses. " He 
will be glorified before all the people," and in the concise 
and emphatical language of Scripture, he adds, " and 
Aaron held his peace." 

Besides the regulations for the personal government of 
the priests and Levites, the book of Leviticus, as I have 
already intimated, prescribes the sacrifices, their manner, 
and periods of celebration ; because those ordinances were 
to be administered by the Levites, 

Sacrifices were stated, or occasional ; of the latter, were 
such as were offered on special occasions, or by individuals, 
for propitiation, atonement, or thanksgiving ; the former 
were periodical, daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly. 
Every day, morning, and evening ; on the weekly Sabbath ; 
at the new moons, and v/ith extraordinary solemnity on the 
tenth day of the seventh month annually. This last was 
termed " the great day of Atonement," when the people 
were enjoined, in an especial manner, to come with con- 
trite hearts, and confess their sins ; and sacrifice was made 
for every soul in the nation. On that day alone, the high 
priest w^as permitted to enter the Holy of Holies, within 
the veil — the whole prefigured the one great atonement 
which should be made by the Redeemer for the sins of all 
mankind. . 

So great a number of sacrifices would necessarily require 
some variety in their qualifications, and manner of offer 
ing. Three particulars invariably observed in every offer 
ing for transgression, it is proper to point out to you, be- 
cause they are expressive emblems in the scheme of salva- 
tion by a divine Mediator. 1st. The animal offered must 
be gentle and innocent in its nature, and perfect in its kind. 
2d. The offerer must lay his hand on the head of the vie- 



MOSAlCAL LAWS. 97 

tim, to signify the transfer of his guilt to the substitute, 
who was accepted in his stead. And, 3d, before the vic- 
tim was burnt, it must be slain, and a part of its blood 
sprinkled on the mercy-seat, to show, that without the 
shedding of blood, pardon could not be obtained. 

Sacrifices and oblations were made periodically, on 
three great national festivals. 

The first was the " Passover, or feast of unleavened 
bread;" instituted on the night of their departure from 
Egypt — and perpetuated in commemoration of that deliver- 
ance. On the fourteenth day of the first month of their 
Ecclesiastical year, they killed a lamb of the first year, 
one for each family — and ate it on the fifteenth, in the 
evening, with bitter herbs, and unleavened bread. Seven 
days the feast was kept : the first and last were holydays, 
on which no servile work was done. Ofierings were made 
every day, and unleavened bread was eaten the w^hole time. 

Next came the feast of Pentecost, fifty days after the 
Passover, to commemorate the giving of the law from 
mount Sinai : and last, " the feast of Tabernacles," a time 
of great rejoicing in the seventh month. During the week 
of its celebration, the Israelites left their houses, and lived 
in the fields, in arbours formed of the branches of the wil- 
low and palm, in grateful recollection of their pilgrimage, 
when they had no permanent dw^elling. 

The gladness and triumph with which the " feast of 
Tabernacles" was kept, is understood to prefigure a glo- 
rious state of the gospel church ; and the " day of atone- 
ment," which occurred ten days before that festival, repre- 
sents the deep and genuine penitence indispensably neces- 
sary to a proper reception of such blessings. 

They had also the " feast of first-fruits," or in-gathering 
of their harvest, when they were required to bring an 
offering of the produce of the earth, before they applied 
the smallest portion to their own use. 

Every seventh year was a " Sabbatical year," or year 
of rest ; in which their land must not be cultivated — the 
sixth harvest always producing sufficient for the supply 
of three years — and every fiftieth was a Jubilee, or year 
of liberty. It would of course fall on a Sabbatical year, 
and bring with it the grateful rest of that welcome season, 
9 



98 MOSAICAL LAWS. 

as well as its own peculiar advantages. The morning of 
the jubilee was triumphantly announced throughout the 
whole land, by the sound of silver trumpets, " proclaiming 
liberty to the captive, and the opening of the prison doors 
to them that were bound." Every Hebrew servant and 
proselyted Gentile was released on that happy day, every 
debt was remitted; and lands that had been alienated, 
either from poverty or choice, were restored to their ori- 
ginal possessors. 

Catherine, How could such a restitution be required, 
without violating the right of a purchaser ? 

Mother, No purchaser could be ignorant of this condi- 
tion of a sale, because the price of an estate was always 
in proportion to the number of years that should elapse 
before the coming of the jubilee. 

Charles, Pray what was the object of this la^? 

Mother, The immediate reason is given in the words 
pronounced on mount Sinai, when the statute was enacted 
— " The land is mine^ it shall not be sold for ever ;" and 
ultimately, that of keeping the tribes of Israel distinct. 
Moreover, it had the salutary tendency to preserve a cer- 
tain degree of equality in a nation of brothers — the branches 
of one stock, who, for the same benevolent reason, were 
forbidden to exact of one another exorbitant interest on 
loans. 

Fanny, It is plain that these festivals could not have 
been celebrated in the desert. 

Mother, Many of them could not, though others might 
have been kept there. The Passover was celebrated, and 
other sacrifices were offered ; but their abode in the wil- 
derness was a state of probation — a seminary of education. 
The scheme of their government was promulgated in the 
desert, but could be completely brought into exercise, only 
in their settled habitation. Without reference to that, many 
of their laws would have been nugatory. They neither 
planted nor reaped there; consequently had no first-fruits 
to bring to the altar ; nor would it have been necessary to 
prohibit certain articles of food, and allow others to bo 
eaten, which was done at this time, where such articles 
might not be found to exist. 



MOSAICAL LAWS. 99 

Charles. What possible good could be promoted by- 
regulations concerning food ? 

Mother. Every divine precept, my son, must be founded 
in wisdom and goodness. Some articles of food, not un- 
wholesome in their nature, might possibly become so, in a 
particular climate, hot and arid, like certain parts of Ca- 
naan, and were therefore forbidden. 

But the prohibition was principally designed, amongst 
other regulations expressly for that purpose, to discourage 
the Israelites from associating with their heathen neigh- 
bours, who ate of the food denied to them. And yet an- 
other moral lesson was figuratively suggested by the in- 
stincts of the selected animals. The useful — the cleanly 
—the docile, intimated the purity and obedience required 
in themselves ; whilst the contrary manners were con- 
demned by the prohibition of all such as were fierce or 
filthy in their nature. 

Fanny, How was the expense of a system so costly to 
be supported? 

Mother. It was indeed very costly. The feast of taber- 
nacles alone, was held at the expense of an hundred and 
ninety-two animals, besides flour and oil. A sacred trea- 
sury was formed of contributions, collected both from the 
community and individuals. The firstlings of all their 
flocks and herds were required for the service of the sanc- 
tuary, and the support of the priests, and made a principal 
share of the stock. 

The sacrifices for individuals were furnished, though not 
offered as heretofore, by themselves ; but delivered to the 
priests, who alone could perform that service. 

Charles, I do not understand how Aaron and his two 
sons could perform so extensive a service. 

Mother, They v/ould have been wholly unable. The 
Levites, a numerous body of inferior priests, assisted them. 
The first-born male of every family in Israel was required 
for the duties of the sanctuary, in grateful acknowledge- 
ment of that mercy which had spared them, when the heir 
of every house in Egypt expired. But this claim was com- 
muted by the substitution of the whole tribe of Levi, to 
which Moses and Aaron also belonged. 



100 MOSAICAL LAWS. 

Fanny. You spoke just now of an ecclesiastical year 
— pray what did you mean by that term ? 

Mother, In the organization of the Jewish Theocracy, 
two sorts of years were used. A civil or solar year, which 
began and ended at the autumnal equinox ; and a religious 
or ecclesiastical year, denominated also " the year of new 
things," commencing with the vernal equinox — because 
that was the season in which they departed from Egypt, 
and became an independent people. 

Charles, My dear mother, you have again used a term 
as new to my sisters, perhaps, as, I confess, it is to me. 
What is Theocracy ? 

Blother, A little recollection would enable you to an- 
svv^er yourself; as the word is derived from the Greek lan- 
guage, which you are now studying. A Theocracy is a 
form of government of which God is himself the Legislator, 

But this whole system — the scanty outline of which I 
have given you, so costly, so burdensome, was but the 
shadow of a substance, " the scaffolding to the building," 
to be wholly abolished when that should be erected. 

Fanny, Did the people who lived under the Mosaic dis- 
pensation consider it in that light ? 

Mother, They did certainly look beyond the emblems 
exhibited to their senses, for something more substantial. 
Every hour beheld their infractions of the moral law — the 
perfect and imperishable rule of their obedience, — the fre- 
quent repetition of their expiatory sacrifices, would teach 
them that their guilt and pollution still remained — and we 
find a writer of their own nation appealing to their com- 
mon understanding against the possibility of a remission 
of sin by the blood of an animal.'^ Yet we cannot suppose 
them to have discerned the way of salvation with the clear- 
ness and certainty afforded to us, who have seen the ac- 
complishment of prophecy — and the verification of signs — 
in Jesus Christ, the glorious antitype — the one, only, and 
efficient, expiation of our offences. 

* Hebrews, x. 4. 



( 101 ) 

NUMBERS. 



Mother, No longer compelled to encounter the terrible 
ensigns o^ justice on the burning summit of Sinai, the 
will of the Sovereign Disposer was now declared to Moses 
from the seat of Mercy, Thence he was commanded, in 
the second month of the second year after they had come 
out of Egypt, to number the children of Israel ; or, as 
we should now say, to make a census of the population. 
Accordingly, upon an enumeration of every male of twenty 
years old and upwards, the result was found to be " six 
hundred and three thousand, five hundred and fifty men, 
able to go to war," excluding the Levites. That tribe, 
being wholly devoted to the service of the altar, instead 
of the first-born of every house, was reckoned from one 
month old and upward, and the amount was twenty-two 
thousand. The sum of the first-born then being taken, 
exceeded the number of the Levites by two hundred and 
seventy-three. An equivalent in money was accepted for 
this excess, and the price of their redemption was paid 
into the sacred treasury. The Levites were not to be ad- 
mitted into the ministry under thirty years of age ; nor 
was their service protracted beyond that of fifly. 

In the beginning of this second year, on its appointed 
anniversary, the passover was regularly celebrated ; and 
on the twentieth day of the second month, the bright 
cloud, the signal of their movements, was taken up from 
the tabernacle ; the silver trumpets were sounded, and the 
congregation proceeded on their journey. The tabernacle, 
and all its appurtenances, borne in order by the Levites, 
went first, and the tribes, in their respective ranks, pre- 
ceded each by his appropriate standard, followed. Three 
days they pursued the path of their heavenly guide, and 
in the wilderness of Paran, obeying its silent mandate, 
they again encamped. (B. C. 1489.) 

At this station, near a place called Kadesh-Barnea, they 

remained a considerable time, and occasioned great trouble 
9# 



102 BENEVOLENCE OF MOSES's LAWS. 

to Moses by their turbulent conduct, which seems to have 
been originally excited by the strangers, " a mixed multi- 
tude," who had followed them out of Egypt. 

Fanny, I am surprised to hear of strangers in the 
camp of Israel — I thought the rigid law of Moses excluded 
all such from their community. 

Mother, Very different, indeed, was the benevolent 
system of the Hebrew legislator. Not one of his laws 
bears an inhospitable aspect ; on the contrary, a variety of 
provisions ensured kindness and justice to the stranger 
who should either live in their cities or become proselytes 
to their religion. — " Thou shalt not pervert the judgment 
of the stranger — nor of the fatherless — nor take the 
widow's raiment to pledge. When thou cuttest down thy 
harvest, and hast forgot a sheaf in the field, thou shalt not 
go again to fetch it — when thou gatherest the grapes of 
thy vineyard, thou shalt not glean it afterward— it shall 
be for the stranger^ for the fatherless, and the widow," — 
w^as the compassionate language in which they were com- 
manded to consider the stranger as one of themselves ; 
and we hear Moses affectionately entreating his brother- 
in-law, Hobab, when he visited him at Kadesh, to remain 
with them, to aid them in their journey through a country 
with which he was acquainted ; assuring him, that he 
should partake liberally of the good things they were go- 
ing to receive; — though the chosen people were at the 
same time enjoined to beware of imitating their impure 
manners or worship. But the propensity to this crime, 
which they had very naturally contracted in Egypt, be- 
trayed them often into serious calamities. The aliens who 
had been induced, by seeing the stupendous power of their 
God, to unite their lot with that of the Hebrews, had pro- 
mised themselves the immediate enjoyment of a land 
" flowing with milk and honey." Disappointed in this 
expectation, they repented of their hasty emigration, com- 
plained of their privations, and instigated the ungrateful 
Israelites — though daily fed by a visible miracle — to loathe 
their heavenly bread, and look back with regret to the 
flesh and herbs of Egypt — the scanty wages of their 
miserable servitude ! " We remember," they exclaimed, 



REBELLION AGAINST MOSES. 103 

while they wept at the doors of their tents, " we remember, 
the fish and the cucumbers, and the melons, of which we 
ate freely ; but now our soul is dried away, for there is 
nothing besides this manna before our eyes !" 

" Wherefore," cried their afflicted chief, to the Hearer 
of Prayer, " hast thou laid the burden of all this people 
upon me. I am not able to bear it alone. Whence should 
I have flesh to give unto all this people ?" " Kill me, I 
pray thee — let me not see my wretchedness." In answer 
to his complaint seventy elders were graciously added to 
the magistracy, and imbued with the spirit of wisdom, to 
assist him in the management of his restless community ; 
and quails w^ere again sent in abundance to gratify their 
longing for flesh; but, with the gratification, came the 
punishment. Whilst they yet feasted with thoughtless 
avidity, the plague broke out amongst them, and swept 
ofl^ great numbers of the oflending people ! 

From the bosom of his own family, where, if anywhere, 
Moses might have looked for harmony and support, he 
was next distracted by dissention and humbled by resistance. 
Zipporah, his wife, had given some umbrage to his brother 
and sister ; and he, perhaps, supposed it became him to 
interpose his good ofiices ; but his mediation was entirely 
rejected, and he himself even accused of presumptuously 
laying claim to an exclusive degree of inspiration, not 
alike imparted to them. To silence forever such ambitious 
pretensions, they w^ere reproved by an awful voice from 
the Cloud, descending to the door of the tabernacle — 
" Were ye not afraid to speak against my servant Moses ?" 
inquired the Great Supreme. " To other prophets will I 
make myself known in visions and dreams, but to him 
will I speak mouth to mouth." And the deluded Miriam 
was additionally punished by disease — she became lep- 
rous, and was banished seven days from the society of her 
brethren. 

Fanny, What could possibly be meant by that myste- 
rious expression — "With bim will I speak mouth to 
mouth ?" 

Mother, The mystery lies alone in the expression — 
the meaning is plainly, to vindicate the disputed authority 



104 REBELLION AGxVINST MOSES. 

of Moses, by reminding the perverse people of that imme- 
diate communion with Deity to which this most favoured 
servant was admitted. Other prophets, He told them, 
would be instructed "in dreams and visions" — but to 
Moses, He would speak by a Voice — as the original words 
import, in conformity with our ideas of the most clear and 
intimate mode of intercourse. But the spirit of sedition 
had got into the camp, and refused to submit even to the 
Voice of the Sovereign. A more violent and extensive 
opposition to his legate soon after appeared ; — Korah, one 
of the Levites, Dathan and Abiram, with two hundred and 
fifty other chiefs of the assembly, inflated with the high 
destiny to which, as a nation, they were called, yet envi- 
ous of the .transcendent preference bestowed on the two 
brothers, indignantly exclaimed, "The whole congrega- 
tion are holy — ye take too much upon you, Moses and 
Aaron." " Ye have brought us up to kill us in this wil- 
derness, and hast not given us an inheritance in fields and 
vineyards." " Hear, I pray you," returned the meekest 
of men, " ye sons of Levi ! Seemeth it but a small thing 
to you, that the God of Israel hath separated you from the 
congregation, to bring you near to him, to do the service 
of the tabernacle, and seek ye the priesthood also ?" 
"Bring your censers all of you prepared with fire and 
with incense, to-morrow, and let Aaron bring also his 
censer— and the Lord will shov/ whom He hath chosen." 
— But Dathan and Abiram not only refused to obey his 
summons to come and answer for their conduct, but viH- 
fied him to his messeno^ers, reiteratinor the outrao;eous 
accusation, " Thou hast brought us up to kill us in this 
wilderness, and wilt thou altogether make thyself a prince 
over us ?" Not at all intimidated, however, by the ominous 
offer of Moses to try their pretensions, the next morning 
the whole company of mutineers appeared at the door of 
the Tabernacle with incense and censers in their unhal- 
lowed hands. To the command to separate himself and 
Aaron from this perverse nation, that they might be con- 
sumed in a moment, their compassionate leader again 
interposed his supplications, that the innocent might not 
be involved with the guilty. " Depart," said he, to the 



Aaron's rod blossoms, &c. 105 

assembled congregation, " from the tents of these wicked 
men, and if they die the common death of all men, then 
the Lord hath not sent me. But if the Lord make a new 
thing, and the earth open her mouth, and swallow them 
up, then ye shall understand that they have provoked the 
Lord ; and hereby ye shall know that he hath sent me to 
do these works." Scarcely had he ceased to speak, when 
the earth indeed opened, and of all those that had mutinied 
against Moses and Aaron, some fell down alive into the 
pit, and ihe rest were instantly consumed by fire ! The 
censers which Korah and his adherents had profaned, 
were converted into broad plates, and fixed permanently 
on the altar — a warning to all who should dare to invade 
the sacred province of Aaron and his family. Not yet 
admonished, but rather irritated by the chastening that 
should have subdued them, other undaunted spirits now 
cried ao-ainst Moses and Aaron, "Ye have killed the 
people of the Lord !" — x^gain they were threatened with 
instant extermination, and the plague broke out and made 
dreadful ravages in the camp. Fourteen thousand seven 
hundred became its victims, before Aaron could arrest its 
progress and obtain a remission of the penalty for their 
aggravated offences, by making a ceremonial atonement, 
in the manner prescribed by their humane legislator. To 
reduce, if possible, these aspiring pretensions, and settle 
the momentous question so daringly pursued, yet another 
confirmation was condescendingly given. At the command 
of Moses, twelve rods or twigs of the almond tree, one for 
each tribe of the house of Israel, were brought by their 
princes, and laid up in the tabernacle ; and on the morrow, 
the rod of Aaron, for the house of Levi — and his alone — 
was found to have " budded, blossomed, and yielded al- 
monds !" After this beautiful emblem of the divine appro- 
priation of the tribe of Levi, and pre-eminently of the 
family of Aaron, had been displayed to the wondering 
congregation, and produced, at least, a momentary convic- 
tion of their guilt, it was laid up for a memorial " beside 
the ark of the Covenant." 

Thus did this inconsiderate nation go on, incurring and 
suffering the penalty of disobedience — repenting and re- 



106 ISRAELITES SURVEY CANAAN. 

turning again to their folly — till one act, pre-eminent in 
ingratitude, filled up the measure of their provocations, 
and excluded them forever from the promised inheritance. 

Catherine, Excluded forever ! Could that be without 
implicating the veracity of the Deity ? — Had he not pro- 
mised? — I ask the question, I assure you, with diffidence. 

Mother, You do right to inquire when you do not fully 
comprehend my meaning ; and especially every suspicion 
of the nature you now intimate, should be cleared up. 
Every act of the Deity can be vindicated ; and no one 
with more certainty than that of the excision of the rebelli- 
ous Israelites. The inheritance was promised to the pos- 
terity of Abraham, not to individuals; and the generation 
we are accompanying through their probation, paid the 
just forfeit of their own infidelity. 

At Kadesh-barnea they were in the neighbourhood of 
the Amorites, a branch of the family of Canaan, on whom 
the malediction had passed, and the Israelites were com- 
manded to ascend the mountains and dispossess them. 
But having heard that this district was inhabited by men 
of gigantic stature and strength, they proposed that a few 
men might first be despatched privately, to examine the 
resources of their adversaries and the quality of their soil. 
This request, apparently so reasonable, was acceded to, 
and twelve persons, all rulers of tribes, were commissioned 
to make a careful survey of the country. After forty days' 
absence they returned, bringing with them specimens of 
its fruits, figs and pomegranates, and grapes of an extra- 
ordinary size, and acknowledged that they had, indeed, 
beheld a country of superior excellence , but " the cities," 
they said, " were walled, and the people v/ere tall, and 
some places were even inhabited by giants, the sons of 
Anak, the giant!" — so that their hearts failed, and they 
saw nothing but defeat and disgrace in the projected enter- 
prise. Caleb and Joshua, two of the deputies, men of faith 
and fortitude, interrupted this discouraging harangue, by 
entreating, eagerly, that they might go up at once, and 
drive out these formidable natives — mere spectres of the 
imagination to them — who would be led on by Him who 
was able to conquer ! But this pious recollection, which 



EXCLITDED FROM CANAAN. 107 

should have unfurled the banners of hope and joy, availed 
them nothmg! The terrified messengers had spread dis- 
may throughout the camp, and they were ready to put 
Caleb and Joshua to death. " Would to God," said they, 
" we had died in the wilderness. We are brought here, 
our wives and our children, to fall by the sword of the 
Canaanites ; — rather let us make us a captain, and return 
into Egypt." 

Catherine. Surely, mother, nothing less than the word 
of inspiration could persuade us, that this people could 
thus seriously withdraw their confidence from a Power 
so magnificently, so unceasingly displayed in their pre- 
servation. 

Mother. Self-love, my daughter, believe me, suggests 
your indignant doubt. The same power preserves us ; the 
same beneficence bestows our daily bread ; and if we for- 
get our obligations, surrounded as we are by all the com- 
forts of social life, shall we question the existence of 
unbelief in the poor Israelites, detained in a barren desert? 
Yet let us not think lightly of their glaring derelictions. 
They had seen the Egyptians severely afflicted, and them- 
selves exempted — they had seen the rolling waves divided 
to make a path for them, and the pursuing host of Pharaoh 
overwhelmed — they had been sheltered from the sun by 
day, and guided by a supernatural light by night — bread 
had fallen from heaven into their hands, and water had 
burst from the rock for them ; yet they refused to believe 
that the same Almighty arm would carry them through ! — 
Disinheritance, and extirpation, had often been threatened, 
and promises and repentance had hitherto found mercy — 
but now the dread decree sounded terribly in their ears* — 
" Because all those men which have seen my glory and 
my miracles in the wilderness, have tempted me now these 
ten times, and have not hearkened to my voice — surely 
they shall not see the land which I sware unto their 
fathers; your carcases shall fall in this wilderness — all 
that were numbered of you from twenty years old and up- 
wards, which have murmured against me. But Caleb, the 

* Numbers, xiv, 22, 23, 29, 30, 31. 



108 MOSES EXCLUDED. 

son of Jephunneh, and Joshua, the son of Nun, and your 
little ones, which ye said should be a prey, them will 1 
bring in, and they shall know the land ye have despised. 
Your children shall wander in this wilderness forty years 
— after the number of the days that ye searched the land, 
each day for a year. But as for you — turn ye, and take 
your journey into the wilderness by the way of the Red 
Sea." This sentence filled them with consternation, and 
they came weeping and confessing their sins to their 
governor, and professing their readiness to attack the 
mountains of the Amorites ; but their day of grace was 
gone, and Moses discouraged them from the vain attempt. 
Yet trusting in the lenity they had so often experienced, 
they presumptuously persisted, although neither led by 
Moses nor the ark of the Covenant, which always went 
with them to battle, and were deservedly defeated ; while 
the timid spies, who had been chiefly instrumental in the 
sad catastrophe, were all cut off by the plague. 

The occurrences I have been relating, took place at a 
very early period of the migration of the Israelites. Time 
and correction had somewhat allayed their restless tem- 
per ; and thirty-seven years had wasted away and swept 
off many of the principal offenders — when, encompassing 
the highlands of mount Seir, they found themselves bereft 
of the refreshing stream, which, like their tutelary cloud, 
had accompanied their devious way. Again the smothered 
flame of rebellion burst out — again they returned to their 
former accusation against Moses and Aaron — -" Ye have 
brought us to die in this wilderness !" The wisdom that 
had determined to make that people the monuments of 
His long-suffering mercy, again directed Moses to take 
Aaron, and, with his rod in his hand, to speak to the rock 
at Meribah, and, at his word, water should flow in the 
presence of the whole congregation. 

Several scriptures concur in bestowing on Moses the 
appellation of the meekest of men. With unwearied pa- 
tience he had firmly conducted his administration till this 
fatal moment, when he suffered one unhappy doubt to in- 
terrupt his duty. The Great Supreme had, perhaps, im- 
parted to his miraculous rod an influence which he would 



DEATH OF AARON. 109 

fail to extend to his word ; and instead of speaking to the 
rock"^ as he had been commanded to do, he raised his arm 
and smote it twice ! Water, indeed, flowed abundantly at 
the stroke ; but his disobedience, and that of his brother, 
who had participated in his crime, brought upon them the 
sentence which had been before pronounced upon the 
rebellious congregation — exclusion from the promised land ! 

In the first month of the fortieth year, they came, after 
seventeen encampments, to the wilderness of Zin, in the 
vicinity of the Edomites. 

Charles, I think you told us, mother, that mount Seir, 
the dwelling of Esau, was also called Edom. 

Mother, I did. And because it was the possession of 
their brethren, the Israelites were not suffered to invade 
it, nor do them any injury. But the most convenient way 
to their place of destination being through that country, 
they sent a respectful request to the Edomites, that they 
might pass by the king's high-way, not touching their fields 
or vineyards, or even drinking of their wells, without 
compensation. 

Charles, Not drink of their wells ! — surely, water is 
cheap — Who would refuse water to a traveller ? 

Mother, Very cheap to us. In our favoured climate, 
all the luxuries of nature abound ; but in the deserts of 
Arabia, a well is a treasure: and, perhaps, being rare, 
they contain so little water, that the supply of an army, 
and a multitude of cattle, might occasion great distress to 
the inhabitants. In the days of Abraham and Isaac, we 
know that wells of water were objects of strife between 
the herdsmen. Yet it seemed not likely that the Edomites 
would refuse the refreshment of water, and the use of the 
high- way to a nation descended from the same stock with 
themselves. They did, however, refuse; and the weary 
travellers were obliged to reach mount Hor, on the oppo- 
site border of the king of Edom's dominions, by a circuit- 
ous road. At mount Hor, Aaron died ; and Eleazer, his 



* The rock of Meribah of mount Sinai, is still seen, bearing the 
evident marks of a supernatural event. The holes and the channels 
of the miraculous stream are its indelible inscription. — See Shaw's 
Travels. 

10 



110 BRAZEN SERPENT. 

son, was arrayed in the holy garments, and anointed in 
his stead. At Kadesh they had buried Miriam, the sister 
of Moses and Aaron. She is called a prophetess. 

After thirty days of mourning for their venerable high 
priest, the Israelites prosecuted their journey ; but vexed 
and retarded, by the contiguous princes, when they im- 
agined themselves almost on the threshold of the land of 
promise — the reward of their sufferings ; — although, after 
their defeat by the Amorites, successful in every contest, 
they once more relapsed into impatience, " and spoke 
against God, and against Moses." Once more they were 
chastised — a species of venomous reptile, by the historian 
called " fiery serpents," was sent among them, and many 
died of the sting which was inflicted. 

Fanny. Mother, I cannot pardon this incorrigible peo- 
ple, so often forgiven, yet still offending — I am quite wea- 
ried of their obstinacy ! 

Mother. I am sensible, my dear, that the frequent 
recurrence of similar incidents is not calculated to enter- 
tain you; but a few instances of the criminal distrust of 
the Israelites, were necessary to vindicate to you the jus- 
tice of that decree which had gone out against them. 
The remedy applied to their disease, in this last case, was 
especially designed to remind them, that neither the pray- 
ers of Moses, nor the sacrifice of their hands, were effi- 
cient. In answer to their repentant entreaty, " we have 
sinned — pray unto the Lord for us !" — their intercessor 
was commanded to erect a serpent of brass, that those 
who were bitten might look on it with an eye of faith 
and live ! 

Catherine. If this method of cure had been the inven- 
tion of Moses, we should say that it savoured of the magic 
of the Egyptians. 

Mother. But we are happily saved from the irreverent 
suspicion, and sanctioned in our application of the figure, 
by the highest authority, even that of the antitype him- 
self — " And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilder- 
ness, even so must the son of Man be lifted up."* 

* John, iii. 



BALAAM CALLED TO CURSE THE ISRAELIES. Ill 

The comparative ease and indolence in which the Israel- 
ites had passed so many years, was now to be relinquished 
for exertion and warfare. The princes, whose territories 
lay on the east of Canaan, could not see, without in- 
quietude, the approach of a numerous people of whom 
they had heard wonderful things. Two kings of the 
Amorites, Sihon and Og, came out with their armies and 
attacked them ; but they were completely vanquished, and 
their countries occupied by the victorious Israelites. Og 
is called the last of a race of giants, who, in earlier times, 
had inhabited the adjacent mountain. Such was his extra- 
ordinary size, that his bedstead of iron, nine cubits in 
length, and four cubits in breadth,* was laid up in the 
city of Rabbah as a curiosity. From him they captured 
" three-score walled cities, besides unwalled towns a great 
many ;" a circumstance which gives us some idea of the 
populousness and strength of the countries through which 
the Israelites had to pass. 

From the defeat of the giant at a place called Edrei, the 
conquerors pursued their march and encamped in the 
plains of Moab. The Moabites were descended from Lot, 
the nephew of Abraham, and on that account were to be 
respected. But the prowess of Israel had spread univer- 
sal terror, and the Moabites, disregarding the peaceable 
disposition manifested in their favour, determined to oppose 
their progress. Yet seeing that Sihon and Og had been 
as nothing in their hands, they did not dare to attack them 
openly. In conjunction, therefore, with the Midianites, 
they adopted the more efficient scheme, as they imagined, 
of destroying them by the mysterious influence of their 
incantations. 

Charles. This was what the ancient heathens called 
devoting their enemies, before they went to battle. 

Mother, For that purpose they sent messengers, men 
of considerable rank in their states, with presents in their 
hands, to invite Balaam, a magician, or soothsayer, from 
Peor, a city of Mesopotamia, to come and curse the inva- 



* Thirteen and a half feet m length, and six feet in breadth, En- 
glish measure. — Burder, 



112 HIS ASS REBUKES HIM. 

ders. Though Balaam was a heathen, he had some know- 
ledge of the true God, and affected to suspend his determi- 
nation, until he should consult " the Lord." The next 
morning he informed the deputies that " the Lord" had re- 
fused to let him go with them; and with this answer they 
returned to Moab. 

A second embassy of princes, yet more honourable 
than the first, was despatched to the soothsayer, to beseech 
him to come, promising him wealth and dignity if he 
would curse this people. Finally, his avarice prevailing 
over his scruples, he went. On the way, as he passed 
through a narrow road enclosed by walls on either side, 
the ass, on which he rode, suddenly stood still. — Surprised 
and provoked, he urged her with blows to go on — but she 
persisted in refusing. At length she opened her mouth 
and spoke : — am not I thine ass on which thou hast ridden 
ever since I was thine unto this day ; was I ever wont to 
do so unto thee?" At that moment the eyes of the pro- 
phet were opened, and he saw " the angel of the Lord," 
standing in the way. — " Wherefore," demanded the celes- 
tial messenger, " hast thou smitten thine ass these three 
times ? — Behold / went out to meet thee, because thy way 
is perverse before me." — Balaam, confounded by this un- 
expected rebuke, acknowledged his guilt, and professed 
his readiness to return to his own city. But he was now 
permitted to proceed, and enjoined to say only that which 
should be revealed to him. 

At the river Arnon, the border of Moab, they were 
welcomed by Balak, the king ; who immediately conducted 
the enchanter to an elevated situation, that he might be- 
hold the multitudes of Israel. Uncertain what he might 
be compelled to say, yet desirous to obtain the promised 
rewards, he required altars to be built, and propitiatory 
sacrifices to be offered, which was done three several 
times, the kings and princes attending. Each time, in- 
stead of the curses required, Balaam pronounced only 
blessings ; and Balak, at last, exasperated by repeated 
disappointments, returned hopeless to his capital. 

Catherine. Did these heathens offer sacrifices to the 
true God? 



HIS PROPHECY. 113 

Mother. It is generally believed that Balaam wor* 
shipped the true God, but was the slave of avarice. The 
king led him from place to place, putting confidence in 
Balaam's God ; saying — " Come, 1 pray thee, I will show 
thee another place ; peradventure it will please ' the Lord^^ 
that thou may est curse me from thence ;" — and Balaam's 
answer discovered his own impotence. — " If Balak would 
give me his house full of silver and gold, I cannot go be- 
yond the commandment of the Lord, to do either good or 
bad of mine own mind ; but what he saith, that will I 
speak." But, although their design was really to propiti- 
ate Jehovah, their worship was so mingled with their own 
superstitions, that it was not accepted ; for it is added, 
after they had built altars, and offered burnt-offerings 
three times — " when Balaam saw that it pleased the Lord 
to bless Israel, he went not, as at other times, to seek for 
enchantments ;" but proceeded to pronounce the sublime 
prophecy, which you will find in the twenty -third and 
twenty-fourth chapters of Numbers. It is a beautiful spe- 
cimen of the eastern style of composition ; full of lofty 
metaphors, and, perhaps, but indistinctly comprehended by 
the speaker. 

Fanny. Do you suppose, mother, that Balaam did not 
understand what he himself pronounced ? 

Mother. There is reason to believe that the prophecies 
delivered by the most pious men, were not always fully 
understood by themselves ; and it is not likely that an un- 
righteous prophet, but indifferently acquainted with the 
true God, would be more highly favoured. 

Fanny. Why then should we put any faith in the pro- 
phecy of such a man as Balaam, a soothsayer, an en- 
chanter ? 

Mother. The people concerning whom the predictions 
were delivered, might safely receive them, for Moses in- 
formed them " the spirit of God came upon him," and we 
have the additional evidence of having seen them accom- 
plished. Take, for instance, these words : '^ Prorn the top 
of the rocks I see him, and from the hills 1 behold him; 
lo, the people shall dwell alone, and shall not he reckoned 
among the nations.'^'' — " Who can count the dust of Jacob j 
10* 



114 HIS PROPHECY. 

and the number of the fourth part of Israel V — '' I shall 
see him but not now — I shall behold him but not nigh : — 
there shall come a Star^ out of Jacobs and a sceptre shall 
arise out of Israeli — " And when he looked on Amalek, 
he took up his parable and said — Amalek was the first of 
the nations; but his latter end shall be, that he perish 
forever y 

These particulars, with several others predicted by Ba- 
laam, are obviously fulfilled. The people of Israel have 
been, and still are, a very numerous nation — they dwell 
alone, that is, they are as completely distinct from all other 
people at this day, as they were when they entered the 
land of Canaan. Even under the monarchs by whom 
they were subdued in later times, they always maintained 
a subordinate government, b}^ their ov/n peculiar laws. — 
They have never been " reckoned among the nations.'' 
" A Star has risen out of Jacob, and a sceptre from Israel." 
And the Amalekites, although in the days of Moses they 
were " the first of nations," have perished forever — not a 
trace of them can be found on the face of the whole earth. 

Altogether disappointed in his hope of obtaining the sil- 
ver and gold of king Balak, by the arts of magic, the cun- 
ning magician now invented another stratagem to ruin the 
thoughtless travellers. He persuaded the Midianites to in- 
vite them to assist at the festive rites of their impious reli- 
gion : — they fell into the snare — they ate of their sacrifices, 
and did homage to their deities ! 

Idolatry had always been punished ; but at this critical 
juncture, on the eve of their entrance into a country en- 
tirely abandoned to such stupid practices, it was particu- 
larly necessary to mark it with signal abhorrence. Ac- 
cordingly, twenty-four thousand of the principal offenders 
were cut off; and Phinehas, the son of Eleazar the priest, 
was rewarded for his pious resolution in executing the pain- 
ful duty of putting to death, with his own Kand, a prince 
of the house of Simeon, who was pre-eminently guilty, 
with a promise of the continuance of the priesthood in his 
family. 



* A star, in the Egyptian hieroglyphics, denoted a deity — in the 
prophetic writings, a star and a sceptre denoted a prince or ruler. 



MIDIANITES VANUUISHED 115 

But the Midianites, who, had they kept quiet, might have 
possessed their country in security, were not with impunity 
to bring these evils on the unoffending Israelites. — Twelve 
thousand men, with Phinehas, and the ark of the covenant, 
were sent against them : — they were conquered — their 
cities were destroyed, and an immense spoil, in cattle, and 
goods of various sorts, was taken. Five kings, and Ba- 
laam their counsellor, paid the price of their folly, in the 
loss of their lives in the battle. The spoil was divided 
between the victors and those who remained in the camp. 
A tribute from each went into the treasury ; to which was 
added, an offering of gratitude, from the officers who went 
on the expedition ; when they found, upon examining their 
troops, that not one had perished ! 

While these contemptible efforts to frustrate the designs 
of Providence were in operation, the persevering leader of 
the Israelites, and Eleazar their priest, were preparing to 
pass the Jordan, the natural barrier between the plains of 
Moab and the land of promise. 

Another census of the male population was taken, and 
found not to contain the name of one individual who had 
been numbered in the wilderness of Sinai, save only Caleb 
and Joshua, the faithful messengers. The sentence the un- 
grateful congregation had brought upon themselves was 
now completely executed ;^they had fallen by disease, by 
the sword, and by fire; and Moses alone, their venerable 
chief, remained, of all that were involved in it ! — He, too, 
must soon be removed by death — and Joshua, a man of 
pre-eminent qualifications, was now pointed out as the cap- 
tain who should succeed him. 

Catherine, Pointed out by whom ? — By Moses ? or was 
he elected by the people ? 

Mother, By neither. Very few things connected with 
the government of the Hebrews, either civil or/ religious, 
originated with themselves. All was the work of the Dei- 
ty ; and by him communicated immediately to Moses; 
who, notwithstanding he is called the legislator, was but 
the organ of the real Sovereign. 

Moses might institute inferior regulations for^ present 
expedience, and select inferior magistrates to assist him ; 



116 JOSHUA CONSECRATED. 

but every permanent precept was promulgated with the 
imperative preface ; " The Lord spake unto Moses, say- 
ing." Every important designation was " according to 
the word of the Lord," — an idea so awful, so commanding, 
that we cannot withhold our respect from those who still 
sincerely adhere to them, and cannot believe with us, that 
the greater part are abolished. 

Moses had been summoned by " a voice from the burn- 
ing bush" at the foot of mount Horeb ; and the same voice 
proceeding now from the " Seat of Mercy," commanded 
him to lay his hands on Joshua, and consecrate him in the 
sight of the whole assembly ; and a gracious promise was 
added, that " a part of the Spirit that had rested on Moses 
should animate and direct his successor." 

Fanny^ As Moses and Joshua were directed in their 
whole conduct, step by step, I do not very well see why 
they should have been enlightened in any unusual degree. 
Mother, Although the very letter of the law was dic- 
tated to Moses, yet he had much need of an enlightened 
understanding in the management of his community. But 
it was the heart also, as well as the intellect, that was im- 
proved by Divine Grace ; and no man was ever more im- 
periously required to " keep his heart with all diligence," 
than was this tried servant. You see, with all the aid he 
received, in one instance the weakness of his nature pre- 
vailed. The people whose turbulent temper had overcame 
the weakness of Moses, were indeed dead ; but their chil- 
dren inherited their character, and would demand of Joshua 
the continual exercise of resolution and constancy, of pa- 
tience and integrity. 

He was to be honoured in the performance of miracles 
as his predecessor had been. He was to drive out nations 
superior in numbers and strength, to dispossess them of 
their fields and fortified cities, and re-people them with his 
brethren. 

Joshua was to divide the land of Canaan equally amongst 
them, giving to the larger tribes the greater portion, and 
to the smaller the less. Their relative location by tribes 
was to be determined by lot ; those only of Reuben and 
Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh excepted. These 



CITIES OF THE ISRAELITES. 117 

last, having more numerous flocks than the others, request- 
ed of Moses the country taken from Og, and Sihon, because 
the grassy plain on the margin of the river, seemed pecu- 
liarly adapted to cattle. 

Their suit was at first received by Moses with much dis- 
pleasure. — Supposing it to be their intention to remain in 
security, while their brethren encountered the populous 
nations beyond the Jordan, he accused them of want of 
faith — of discouraging their brethren by their timidity, as 
their fathers had done at Kadesh, and thereby excluded 
themselves from the promised rest. 

But Reuben and Gad disclaimed the selfish design — 
they would, they said, build folds for their cattle, and leave 
their wives and children in the conquered cities, while 
themselves would go over armed with their brethren, and 
quit them not until they had obtained peaceable possession 
of their inheritance. To this condition Moses assented, 
and the two tribes, and half the tribe of Manasseh, were 
settled in the land of Gilead, from Mount Hermon on the 
north, to the river Arnon, the border of Moab, on the 
south. 

Fanny. To live in cities, and pasture great multitudes 
of cattle, which it is evident the Israelites must have done, 
were it only for their sacrifices, is irreconcileable with our 
notions of things ; it was certainly very inconvenient. 

Mother, You are not to imagine the cities of the Israel- 
ites, either here or on the other side of the river, were 
large and confined like ours. They were villages rather, 
although they had walls, surrounded by their land both 
for pasture and tillage. They went into the fields to their 
occupations in the day time, and returned into the city at 
night. Their simple habits required but fev/ of the arts, 
and in those days perhaps they had no artisans by pro- 
fession. They were all husbandmen, rich only, or chiefly, 
in flocks and herds, and in the productions of the earth. 

In the enumeration made by Moses and Joshua, a 
chasm appeared in the family of Hepher, and tribe of Jo- 
seph. Zelophehad, his son, had died in the wilderness, 
leaving no male heir to receive his portion, and transmit 
his name. But five females, his daughters, appeared be- 



118 LAW OF INHERITANCE. 

fore the rulers, petitioning for the right of inheritance. 
" Why," said they, " should the name of our father be 
done away from among his family, because he hath no 
son ?" He had not deserved this disgrace, they affection- 
ately argued ; he had not leagued with the companies that 
had been cut off in the guilt of rebellion, but had " died 
in his own sin." " Give us therefore," said they, " a por- 
tion among our brethren." Their case was brought before 
the divine Oracle, and became the occasion of a perma- 
nent statute, for the distribution of property in Israel. 
" The daughters of Zelophehad speak right — thou shalt 
surely give them an inheritance among their father's 
brethren. If a man die, and have no son, then ye shall 
cause his inheritance to pass unto his daughter. And if 
he have no daughter, then ye shall give his inheritance 
unto his brethren. And if he have no brethren, then ye 
shall give his inheritance unto his father's brethren. And 
if his father have no brethren, then ye shall give his in- 
heritance unto his kinsman that is next to him, of his 
family ; and he shall possess it, and it shall be unto the 
children of Israel, a statute of judgment.'"^ 

Catherine, Is not this precisely our own law ? 

Mother. Yes, and you will find that the judicial, as 
well as the moral code of all civilized nations, as far as 
circumstances allow, are borrowed from scripture — the 
plentiful fountain of justice and wisdom. But the pride 
of man is ever polluting the streams. The chiefs of the 
house of Joseph objected, that this regulation might ope- 
rate to the prejudice of their tribe, inasmuch as the pos- 
sessions of the daughters of Zelophehad, would go with 
them to the tribe into which they should marry — destroy- 
ing thereby the contemplated equality of the nation. To 
prevent this consequence, it was provided, that a female 
possessing an inheritance, should not marry out of her 
own tribe — and these heiresses were therefore united to 
their kinsmen. 

The tribe of Levi, deriving their chief support from 
the sacred treasury, were to have no landed property — 

* Numbers, xxvii, 8, 9, 10, 11. 



CITIES OF REFUGE. 119 

but forty-eight cities, taken from the other tribes, and in 
proportion to the extent of each, were to be allotted for 
their dwellings, with suburbs, or pasture grounds for their 
cattle.^ 

Six of the forty-eight, to be " cities of refuge," for the 
involuntary homicide, to which he might flee and receive 
protection, from the vengeance of the friends of him whom 
he had slain. This immunity continued, during the life 
of the officiating high priest: and after his decease, the 
offender might return securely to his home. But should 
he be found beyond the limits of the city, and fall into the 
hands of those who sought his life, within that period, 
they were not accountable for any punishment which they 
might inflict. For a deliberate, premeditated murder, no 
satisfaction might be taken. Of this most atrocious of all 
crimes, the utmost abhorrence is unequivocally expressed, 
in these emphatic words : — " Ye shall take no satisfaction 
for the life of a murderer, which is guilty of death ; but 
he shall surely be put to death. So ye shall not pollute 
the land wherein ye are — for blood defileth the land, and 
the land cannot he cleansed of the blood that is shed 
therein, but by blood.^'^'f 

Fanny, To confine a man to one place, and at a dis- 
tance from his family and friends, perhaps, as it might 
happen, for a number of years, would seem rather to be 
a punishment, than a favour — considering too, that the 
homicide was involuntary. 

Mother, When the life of a man is taken away by 
accidental violence, the fact will frequently be attended 
with circumstances exciting suspicion in the minds of those 
most nearly interested ; and instigating them to revenge. 
The city of Refuge was then an asylum for him who 
might unhappily become the object of vindictive or unrea- 
sonable passion. Besides, life under any circumstances is 
a valuable treasure, because it is the season for repent- 
ance, and preparation for a longer and a better state of 
existence. To be, therefore, even the innocent cause of 

* About 305 acres surrounding each city.— See Scofs Tables, 
t Numbers, xxxv. 31, 33. 



120 C1TIE& OF REFUGE. 

depriving a fellow-creature of this invaluable opportunity, 
must fill a reflecting mind with the most poignant regret, 
and has been in many instances, the means of bringing 
sinners to contrition. Seclusion for a time, from the ob- 
jects that had most fondly occupied the heart, was well 
adapted to promote this most important end, and was 
indeed a blessing though it might at first seem a punish- 
ment. 

Fanny, But would it not have been better, that the sus- 
pected reputation should have been cleared up, as it is 
done with us, in the trial by jury, than that it should have 
remained under a cloud forever— whilst sympathy and 
safety were only procured by the death of the High Priest 
— a circumstance altogether unconnected with the guilt or 
innocence of the offender ? 

Mother, The trial by jury, my dear, is an admirable 
institution for us, whose circumstances are altogether dif- 
ferent from those of the Israelites. Nor were they the 
subjects of arbitrary power — they had their courts and 
their witnesses, and guilt or innocence was ascertained 
with caution ; but their judicial and typical laws, were 
sometimes blended together, — of which peculiarity, the 
city of Refuge is an instance. The allusions to it in Scrip- 
ture, both under the Mosaic and the Christian dispensa- 
tion, instruct us that it was intended to teach them, that 
their most indifferent actions were not innocent — that they 
were continually obnoxious to punishment, and that par- 
don and salvation were to be obtained only through the 
merits of the life and death of their promised Messiah, 
our exalted High Priest, 



( 121 ) 



DEUTERONOMY. 



Charles. My impatience, Mother, to pursue the history 
of the Israelites has led me to anticipate our conversation. 
I have looked into the book of Deuteronomy, but have met 
with nothing that you had not told us before. 

Mother, I am very much gratified in finding that you 
have attended so carefully, for your conclusion is nearly 
correct. The book of Deuteronomy is a book of repeti- 
tion, and that is the import of the name.^ It is the vale- 
dictory discourse of Moses to the Israelites. 

Their pilgrimage was now drawing to a close, and the 
life of their venerable legislator was restricted to that pe- 
riod. He had earnestly desired to enter the promised 
land, but his prayer was rejected, and he submitted. 

The near approach of their separation awakened all his 
paternal love for the people of his charge — his anxious 
concern for their happiness, and his apprehensions of the 
disastrous consequences of that levity which had severely 
put his constancy to the test— and finally, occasioned his 
exclusion. 

The generation that was now to enjoy the blessings 
promised to Abraham, had not incurred the unpardonable 
guilt of despising " the voice that spake from the moun- 
tain that burned with fire unto the midst of heaven" — the 
tremendous spectacle displayed on mount Sinai ; they 
were " the children — the little ones" whom those incorri- 
gible men had often complained were brought out of Egypt 
to die of hunger and thirst. The precepts and the pray- 
ers of Moses had failed to avert the penalty of disobedi- 
ence from their fathers ; yet flattered by his own invincible 
affection, he indulged the hope, that the last words of a 
long tried, and now departing friend, might stimulate their 
children to pursue that course of virtue and piety, which 

* From the Greek words Deuteros^ the second, and Nomos, a law. 
11 



122 LAST ADDRESS OF MOSES. 

alone would secure their peace in the inheritance of Abra- 
ham. 

He assembled the nation, therefore, on the plain of 
Moab, on the first day of the eleventh month of the for- 
tieth year of their abode in the desert, and delivered to 
them the persuasive address contained in the book of Deu- 
teronomy. 

And first, because the most of his auditors were either 
very young, or not yet born when the posterity of Jacob 
had walked through the dried bed of the Red Sea, he 
recited briefly their journey from Horeb " through the 
great and terrible wilderness, by the way of the mountains 
of the Amorites," to the place where they then stood — the 
unceasing care of an ever-watchful guardian, who had 
provided for all their wants ; and travelling before them 
in a fire by night, and a cloud by day, had directed them 
where to pitch their tents — who had enabled them ta over- 
come all opposition, and delivered their enemies into their 
hands — yet they had not put their trust in Him — even 
refusing at Kadesh, when they were told to go up at once 
and possess their inheritance ! 

Charles, But the people to whom Moses now spoke, 
were not the fearfijl men who refused — why then did he 
accuse them so harshly ? 

Mother, They were not in the first instance, but as 
they grew into manhood, they had sufficiently manifested 
the same culpable dispositions, to justify Moses in warn- 
ing them both from the example of their fathers, and their 
own aberrations. He might remind them, that they had 
themselves been encompassed by the mercies of the 
" mighty one of Israel" — " they had been fed without 
bread, and their raiment had not grown old by the way," 
But he had yet another and equally decisive plea. " The 
Lord," said he, " made not this covenant in Horeb with 
our fathers, but with us — even vs, who are all of us alive 
this day. Hear, therefore, O Israel, the statutes and the 
judgments which I speak in your ears this day— that ye 
may learn them and do them, that it may be well with 
you. The Lord our God is one Lord, and thou shalt love 
him, with all thy heart, and with all tby soul, and with all 
thy might. These words shall be in thine heart, and thou 



LAST ADDRESS OF MOSES. 123 

shalt teach them diligently unto thy children — and shall 
talk of them when thou sittest in thy house, and when 
thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and 
when thou risest up." Thus solemnly and earnestly did 
Moses demand the serious attention of the Israehtes, while 
he proceeded to rehearse the principal laws, and added 
others, both moral and judicial ; explaining and enforcing 
all, as his fervent zeal dictated, by every consideration of 
their own utter unworthiness, by the peculiar nature of the 
obligations they were under, — and by the free sovereign 
goodness of God ; who had not " set his love upon them 
because they were more in number, for they were the few- 
est of all people :" nor for their righteousness had he cho- 
sen them, " for they were a rebellious and obstinate people." 
He bade them, therefore, take heed, when they possessed 
houses full of good things, which they filled not, and wells, 
which they digged not, and vineyards and olives, which 
they planted not — that they did not forget the Lord who 
brought them out of the house of bondage, and say, " by 
my might and my power have I gotten this wealth." To 
promote this modest temper, peculiarly becoming in a 
people so greatly distinguished, he commanded them, when 
they should have peaceable possession of their inheritance, 
and came with the first fruits of the earth annually, that 
they should confess, while they put their offering into the 
hands of the priests — "A Syrian, ready to perish, was my 
father, and he went down into Egypt and sojourned with 
a few, and became there a nation, great, mighty and popu- 
lous — and the Egyptians afflicted us, and when we cried 
unto the Lord God of our fathers, he looked upon our 
affliction and brought us forth with a mighty hand, and 
with signs and wonders." Such transporting recollections 
crowding into the mind of the grateful chieflain, he ex- 
claims — " For ask now of the days that are past, since the 
day that God created man upon the earth, whether there 
hath been any such thing as this great thing is, or hath 
been heard like it." — " Did ever people hear the voice of 
God speaking out of the midst of fire, and live ?" '' Or 
hath God essayed to go and take him a nation from amidst 
another nation, by temptations, by a mighty hand, and by 
great terrors ; according to all that the Lord your God 



124 LAST ADDRESS OF MOSES. 

did for you in Egypt before your eyes? And now Israel," 
he asks, " what is the reasonable service the Lord requires 
of thee, but to fear him, to walk in all his ways, to love 
him with all thy soul, to keep his commandments and 
statutes, for thy good? For the Lord your God, is God of 
Gods, and Lord of Lords, which regardeth not persons, 
nor taketh rewards. He doth execute the judgment of the 
fatherless and widow, and loveth the stranger in giving 
him food and raiment. Love ye^ therefore, the stranger, 
for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt. Thou shalt 
fear the Lord thy God, him shalt thou serve, and to him 
shalt thou cleave, and swear by Ids name,^^ 

Charles. I am sorry to interrupt you, mother, but 
pray, v/hy such an injunction — to swear by his name ? 

Mother. That is, when it should be necessary to make 
an oath, they should swear only by his name, and offer no 
sort of homage to the idols of the Canaanites. U they 
Jiad often indicated a propensity to this atrocious crime, in 
their insulated situation in their wilderness, and notwith- 
standino^ their sin^^ular consecration to Jehovah, it became 
imperatively necessary to admonish them of the dangers 
to which they were about to be exposed in an idolatrous 
country. They were therefore commanded to remove 
every object that might tempt them from their duty. To 
destroy, utterly, every place where the heathens had wor- 
shipped, to cut down their sacred groves, to burn their 
images, and their pictures, and reject and detest the gold 
and the silver with which they were adorned ; ever re- 
membering, that when they heard the voice of their 
Sovereign, they " sav/ no similitude" of any object, either 
terrestrial or celestial — that no im.posing appearances, not 
even the sun and moon, and the stars, the most splendid 
phenomena in the universe, might entice them to imitate 
the heathens, and corrupt the worship of the invisible 
Deity. And because an intercourse with them could not 
be maintained with innocence, for they had already given 
deplorable evidence of the fatal facility with which they 
might be assailed, they were commanded to make no 
treaty of friendship — no covenant — and especially, no 
marriages, with the nations of Canaan — but utterly to ex- 
terminate them. 



LAST ADDRESS OF MOSES. 125 

Charles. Was not that a cruel command 1 
Mother, A severe one, no doubt, with respect to the 
Israelites, who, having no personal quarrel with the in- 
habitants of Canaan, must have reluctantly obeyed ; but 
many of our duties are repugnant to our natural feelings. 
The Great Supreme, however, although he has a right to 
implicit compliance, is pleased to conciliate our reason. 
"Not for their own righteousness," he told the Israelites, 
" were they to inherit a delightful land, but for their 
abominable wickedness, the natives were to be dispossess- 
ed. Their morals were as detestable as their relio-ion was 

o 

corrupt, and this punishmicnt he might as rightfully inflict 
by one instrument as by another : by famine or the sword 
— by earthquakes or pestilence — as his wisdom might de- 
termine. 

All the people comprehended under the general name of 
Canaanites, were not equally obnoxious to the divine ma- 
lediction. Some nations were to be spared on condition 
of submission to the conquerors, and the payment of 
tribute, but in case of resistance, to be partially punished 
by the slaughter of the men ; while the women and children 
were to be saved alive. 

Yet in condescension to their weakness, their gracious 
Sovereign persuaded them to the discharge of their duty 
by motives addressed to the most powerful feelings of 
human nature — their interest. The land to which they 
were hastening was contrasted with that from which they 
had escaped — not parched, like that where they had 
" sowed their seeds and reared them with labour, but 
watered with the rains of Heaven," — a varieo-ated land- 
scape of valleys and hills — of brooks and fountains — of 
trees and minerals. And they were encouraged to attack 
without fear, a people stronger and more numerous than 
themselves, by the promise that their God would " go be- 
fore them like a consuming fire to destroy them, and 
deliver their kings into their hand." 

Still further to animate their hope, the inspired orator 
expatiated, in glowing figures, on the surpassing prosperity, 
both public and private, that awaited their steady ad- 
herence to the laws ; love and harmony in their families ; 

overflowing abundance in their stores, and inviolable 
11 # 



126 LAST ADDRESS OF MOSES. 

security from their enemies. On the other hand, an ap- 
palling catalogue of calamities portrayed the miseries of 
revolt. Sickness and sorrow, famine and war, and finally, 
subjugation and captivity ! " The Lord," he added, " will 
scatter thee among all people, from one end of the earth 
even unto the other ; and there thou shalt serve other gods, 
even wood and stone. And among these nations thou shalt 
find no ease ; neither shall the sole of thy foot have rest, 
and thy life shall hang in doubt before thee, and thou shalt 
fear day and night. In the morning thou shalt say, 
' Would God it were even, and at even thou shalt say. 
Would God it were morning !' Keep, therefore, the words 
of this Covenant and do them, that ye may prosper in all 
that ye do." 

From the sketch I have attempted, you can have but a 
faint idea of this interesting speech. You must read it 
throughout to obtain a just conception of the piety and 
benevolence of Moses. 

Fanny, Surely his virtues and his services, and now 
this affecting exhortation, would ensure the gratitude of 
his people and their observance of his statutes. 

Mother, Their esceem for Moses, and their perfect 
conviction of the divine origin of his laws, did secure a 
nominal attachment to them. But the essence of the 
requisitions consisted in the consecration of the whole 
heart ; and all the sanctions of the law, its threatenings 
and its promises, he knew, would not be proof against the 
deteriorating power of an intercourse with heathens of the 
worst possible character. But that they might be without 
excuse, he continued to provide expedients to counteract 
its fascinations. He wrote a hymn of praise and thanks- 
giving, and directed them to teach it to their children. He 
bade them to erect a pillar of stones, when they should 
come into the promised land, and engrave on it " the law," 
that it might be always in the view of the passenger. And 
to impress their memory and imagination, being aware of 
their fondness for symbols, he commanded them to divide 
the congregation formally and place them on the two 
mounts Ebal and Gerizzim ; Simeon and Levi, Judah and 
Issachar, Joseph and Benjamin, on the latter ; and Reuben^ 
Asher and Gad, Zebulon, Dan, and Naphtali, on the 



LAST ADDRESS OF MOSES. 127 

former ; whilst the Levites rehearsed m their hearing, the 
blessings that awaited their inflexible allegiance, and the 
curses that would be the infallible punishment of their 
apostacy. And, lastly, he delivered the " book of the law" 
to the priests, and commanded them to keep it in the " side 
of the ark" of the Covenant, and read the whole every 
seventh year to the assembled tribes, at the feast of taber- 
nacles. 

Catherine. What do you mean by the book of the law 1 

Mother, The five books of Moses, both singly and 
collectively, are spoken of in the Scriptures under that 
title. They are also called " the books of Moses," and 
sometimes are designated merely by his name, as for in- 
stance, " they have Moses and the Prophets." 

Having finished his address to the people, he pronounced 
a prophetic blessing on each tribe, and gave a parting 
charge to Joshua, in the presence of all Israel, assuring 
him, both for his and their encouragement, that the Lord 
of hosts would conduct them across Jordan to the land he 
had given to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob ! 

He then left them, and ascended, alone, a ridge of 
mountains that lay near the border of Moab, and from 
Pisgah, the summit, he was indulged with an extensive 
prospect of the land he had earnestly desired to enter. 
The stream of Jordan flowed at his feet ; the lakes of 
Cinnereth and Asphaltite, and the stately cedars of Leba- 
non on the north ; and the spreading palm trees of the 
south, were at once in his view. He beheld the cities and 
the fields j which his brethren were to possess ; but their 
faces he saw no more — for there he died — and in a valley 
not far distant, it is said, " the Lord buried him," and no 
man has ever discovered his sepulchre ! (B. C. 1471.) 

Catherine. That is a very extraordinary fact. Why 
was he not buried with funeral honours like other celebrated 
men? It would have gratified the people who had re- 
ceived so many invaluable services from him, to have paid 
this last tribute to his worth. 

Mother. He who recorded the death and secret burial 
a£ Moses, has barely related the fact, without one word 
of comment — a fact so very remarkable, that the curiosi- 
ty of the reader is irresistibly impelled to look for a rea- 



128 LAST ADDRESS OF MOSES. 

son, which is supposed to be discovered in the high vene- 
ration of Israel for their great legislator. Had they 
known the place of his interment, they would have held it 
sacred, and have transgressed the bounds of allowable 
respect for his remains. 

Catherine, Is this account of Moses's death in the 
book of Deuteronomy — a book of his own writing ? 

Mother, It is in the last chapter of that book ; and 
some have not scrupled to believe was prophetically writ- 
ten by himself, as many other prophecies are found in the 
Pentateuch. But we are not driven to this conclusion by 
the absence of every other mode of explanation. The 
last chapter of Deuteronomy was most probably composed 
by Joshua, the writer of the following book, and injudi- 
ciously placed with the writings of Moses, by those who 
arranged the sacred canon, because it concludes his story. 

But if the bereaved congregation were not permitted to 
weep over the grave of their inestimable benefactor, they 
were allowed to remain inactive in their encampment 
thirty days, indulging their sorrow, although they were in 
sight of their ultimate object. 

Charles, Thirty days, I remember, they mourned for 
Aaron, likewise. I did not know, until now, that our cus- 
tom of mourning thirty days for distinguished men, had 
an origin so ancient or respectable. 

Mother, In reading the scriptures, we find many cus- 
toms, now become so common, that we never think of 
inquiring whence they came : like this of mourning a 
certain time, they do not always express our genuine 
feelings. In observing this decent custom, we often, in- 
deed, pay to pre-eminent virtue the respect it deserves \ 
but seldom are we called to lament, like the Israelites, a 
national loss — a benefactor of mankind ! Their affliction 
was deep and sincere, and embittered by the reproachful 
conviction, that but for their own insupportable provoca- 
tions, they might still have enjoyed his society, and profit- 
ed by his wisdom. For although he was an hundred and 
twenty years old, he possessed all his faculties in their 
native strength. " His eye was not dim, nor was his na- 
tural force abated." 

For many years after his death, his people adhered 



CHARACTER OF MOSES. 129 

faithfully to his precepts, and through all their revolutions, 
they continue to revere his authority. While the world 
endures, he will remain the greatest of historians and pro- 
phets. His writings are his most expressive eulogy. They 
reflect the wise and upright man, and the loyal servant of 
his master. His style is plain and perspicuous, such as 
the importance of his subject demanded ; yet interspersed 
with the most beautiful and sublime strains of poetry, 
where they could be used with propriety. His prophetic 
ode, in the 31st chapter of Deuteronomy, is said by an 
elegant and learned writer on Hebrew poetry, to be " sin- 
gularly magnificent, and scarcely to be paralleled from 
all the choicest treasures of the muses." As a prophet, he 
has this testimony to his transcendent dignity — that there 
arose in Israel, not one like him, " whom the Lord knew 
face to face !" His whole ceremonial law is a prophecy 
of that divine Teacher, who he predicted should come, in 
these remarkable words : — " The Lord your God will 
raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy 
brethren, like unto me : unto him ye shall hearken." 

From the midst of the brethren of Moses, the descend- 
ants of Israel, the Lord our God has raised up unto us a 
Prophet, " in whom he is well pleased ;" and happy are 
we if we hearken unto him. 



JOSHUA 



Mother, The incident with which the book of Joshua, 
the subject of our ensuing conversation, commences, ex- 
emplifies a consoling truth, presented every day to our 
observation — that the evils to which we are inevitably sub- 
jected in this life, are ever accompanied by circumstances 
which mitigate their severity — and sometimes even pro- 
duce results the most beneficial. The loss of a friend with 
whom we have passed many years in delightful intercourse, 
is an affliction so common, that almost every heart can 
tell its bitterness. If his wisdom has illumined our path — 
if his power and his zeal have promoted our interest — we 



130 SPIES SENT TO JERICHO. 

feel that a right hand is cut off : but if many failures in 
our own duty to this friend cloud the recollection of past 
pleasure — now too late to make any reparation — what is 
there left to complete our humiliating regret ? To embitter 
the sorrow of the Israelites for the death of their illustrious 
legislator, the history of whose virtues was but the history 
of their own ingratitude — all these distressing reflections 
were combined, yet the sad event brought with it a cheer- 
ing consolation. The voice of their visible Protector re- 
minded them that the last remaining obstacle to their en- 
trance into the promised land was now removed ; " Moses 
my servant is dead, now therefore arise and go over this 
Jordan." 

Fanny, Then about to encounter hostile nations, they 
would most sensibly feel the loss of their experienced 
Chief. 

Mother. That loss, irreparable as it might seem, was 
supplied by the substitution of Joshua, appointed by God 
himself, and consecrated by the hands of Moses, to suc- 
ceed him in the command of the Israelites. 

That no diffidence, however, might retard the move- 
ments of Joshua, " The Lord," who had supported Moses 
by his presence, now appeared to his successor, and as- 
sured him, that he should " divide the promised inheritance 
to the children of Abraham." " Only be thou strong, and 
very courageous," (said he) " that thou mayest observe to 
do according to all the law which Moses my servant com- 
manded thee. Turn not from it to the right hand, nor to 
the left, that thou mayest prosper whithersoever thou goest. 
This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth, 
but thou shalt meditate therein, day and night, that thou 
mayest observe to do according to all that is written there- 
in, for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then 
thou shalt have good success." 

Thus graciously encouraged, the new commander be- 
gan his arrangements for taking possession of Canaan. 
Two confidential young men were despatched to examine 
the strength of the city of Jericho, which, lying very near 
to the opposite shore of Jordan, must be taken before they 
could penetrate into the country, 
i Catherine. That would seem to have been an unneces- 



PREPARATIONS TO PASS JORDAN 131 

sary precaution. The Lord their God had promised to go 
with them — what strength or power could counteract his 

will ? 

Mother, It is not generally the will of Heaven to be- 
stow blessings on those who do not seek them. Had the 
Israelites been put into the possession of Canaan without 
any extraordinary exertions of their own — the indolent 
might have taken encouragement to fold their arms, and 
presumptuously expect the unclouded sunshine of prospe- 
rity. I just now recited a part of the charge that was 
given to Joshua, for the purpose of showing you that the 
favourable designs of Providence exempt not us from the 
performance of duty, and as " the book of the law" was 
given to him for a guide, so the sacred Scriptures are given 
to us, to point out the " way" in v/hich we may hope for 
" good success." So well was Joshua instructed, that al- 
though he knew himself to be engaged in an enterprise 
that would ultimately be successful, he proceeded with as 
much caution as if his own sagacity, or the valour of his 
men, were his only dependence. 

When he had despatched the messengers, he called to- 
gether his officers, and directed them to go through the 
camp, and command the people to prepare their provision, 
for within three days they should pass over the Jordan. 
The tribes who were already located on the eastern bank 
in the blooming land of Gilead, were reminded of their 
engagement to leave their families and assist their brethren 
undllhey too should have a permanent habitation. They 
readily declared their adherence to their promise — and their 
loyal resolution to obey and to support Joshua, as the law- 
ful successor of Moses, devoting themselves even to the 
punishment of death, should any be found disobedient. 
Whilst Joshua was busied in these dispositions for a re- 
moval, his messengers had made their way into the city 
of Jericho, though not without the peril of their lives. The 
victorious march of Israel had spread dismay among the 
Canaanites — their army but a few miles distant, the pre- 
sence of two strangers in the city would naturally create 
suspicion ; accordingly they were carefully watched, and 
at length traced to the house of Rahab, a woman who lived 
on the eastern wall of the tov/n, and a mandate from the 



132 SPIES PROTECTED BY RAHAB. 

king of Jericho required her instantly to deliver them up. 
But their hostess, aware of their danger, had humanely 
concealed them on the top of her house, beneath a quan- 
tity of flax which had been spread there to dry, so that 
they escaped the search of the king's messengers. She 
acknowledged, indeed, that they had lodged in her house, 
whence they had but lately departed, and affected to assist 
in their arrest, by directing the messengers towards the 
river, the fords of which she said the spies could not yet 
have reached. Having thus rid herself of the unwelcome 
intruders, she repaired to her guests, and hastened them 
away, confessing that she had been prompted to this act 
of kindness, by the universal terror of her countrymen, 
and her own perfect conviction that the whole land was 
given to the Israelites by their God. She believed he was 
the true God, and that his purposes could not be frustrated ; 
she therefore entreated that she and her relatives might be 
protected when Jericho should be taken. This just return 
for the favour she had shown to them, they readily pro- 
mised, on the condition that her family and friends should 
be gathered into her house, and there remain : but for the 
safety of an individual vv^ho should venture into the streets, 
they would not be responsible. 

Charles, How could the young men be concealed on 
the top of a house ? 

Mother, The roofs of houses are not in every country 
inclined like ours. In Palestine, and other eastern cli- 
mates, they were then flat, and still continue so — for cus- 
toms, with them, do not fluctuate as they do with us. The 
inhabitants walk, sit, and sometimes, in hot weather, even 
sleep on them. The Mosaical law embracing a great va- 
riety of particulars, afl^ecting the safety or the comfort of 
its subjects, provided that they should make " battlements 
for their roof, that they might not bring blood upon their 
house, if any man should fall from thence." Their houses 
were also low, — not more than one, or at most two stories 
high. That of Rahab, being at the extremity of the city, 
the escape of the spies was facilitated by letting them down 
by a cord from the top, to the outside of the wall — after it 
had been agreed by the parties, that the same cord (which 
being of scarlet would be conspicuous) should be exhibited 



PASSAGE OF THE JORDAN. 133 

in a window in front, as a signal to the Israelites, and en- 
sure the inviolability of the mansion. Pursuing her ad- 
vice, the young men hastened to the neighbouring moun- 
tains, and lay in their recesses, until their pursuers, de- 
spairing of success, had returned to the city. On the 
evening of the third day, they arrived safely at the He- 
brew camp, and encouraged their brethren to go boldly 
forward — for the disheartened Canaanites would be an easy 
conquest. 

Early, therefore, the next morning, being the ninth day 
of the month, they decamped and drew near to the river, 
where they lodged that night, and received orders for the 
operations of the following day. 

The priests whose business it was to bear the Taber- 
nacle and its furniture, were commanded to lead the way. 
Forty thousand of the two and a half tribes, all armed for 
battle, were to follow next at the distance of two thousand 
cubits from the ark, and the nine other tribes in regular 
order, to bring up the rear. Twelve men, one out of every 
tribe, were appointed to erect a pillar of stones in the midst 
of the river, to commemorate their passage, and to carry 
thence twelve other stones, for a similar monument on the 
opposite shore. 

The priests were further commanded to stand still when 
their feet should touch the waters of Jordan — for there 
they should receive a signal proof of the power and pro- 
tection of Jehovah. 

Catherine, What distance in our measurement would 
these two thousand cubits make, between the ark and the 
people? 

Mother. I am not able to tell you. Two cubits of dif- 
ferent measures are used in scripture. It is uncertain 
which of the two is here intended. If the shorter be the 
one, it would make but one mile — the longer, would per- 
haps make two.* It is however supposed to be the same 
measure which is called ",a sabbath day's journey;" be- 
cause the Israelites were allowed to travel on that day, 

* This calculation is adopted with diffidence. It may be sufficient 
for our purpose — though its accuracy is contested by some Biblical 
critics. 

12 



134 PASSAGE OF THE JORDAN. 

only to the tabernacle, which for ages was the place where 
alone they might sacrifice, and now in their encampment 
was pitched in the centre, two thousand cubits distant from 
the position of the nearest tribes. 

In the manner arranged by their general, the whole 
congregation removed from their station and approached 
the margin of the river. The priests who bore the ark 
containing the testimony of God's Covenant, stept fear- 
lessly into the water, although it was now the time of bar- 
ley harvest ; when Jordan receiving the melted snow from 
the mountains of Libanus, overflows his banks. There 
they halted, in obedience to the orders they had received, 
and lo ! the promised miracle appears ! A passage, such 
as had been made for their fathers through the Red Sea, 
was opened through the Jordan for them, " the waters 
above, rising up on a heap before the city x\dam" — far 
beyond the place where the Israelites stood, and those be- 
low flowing rapidly on towards the Dead Sea, whilst the 
wondering people passed over the dried channel ! 

Charles, That was indeed a signal instance of divine 
favour — yet the Jordan is, I believe, but a little stream ? 

Mother. Your sister, whose geographical knowledge is 
somewhat fresher than mine, can tell you its size. 

Catherine, It is a little stream in comparison with many 
other rivers, especially our American waters, though it is 
the most considerable in all that region. It is said by 
some writers to take its name from Jor^ a stream, and Dan^ 
a city near its source in the mountains of Lebanon. Pass- 
ing through the lakes of Samochon, and Tiberias, in a 
course nearly south, and augmented by several rivulets — 
particularly the well known brook Cedron — it terminates 
in the Dead Sea. Its whole length does not much exceed 
an hundred miles. It is now so diminished in breadth as to 
be not more than twenty yards : but it is deep and rapid. 

Charles, It might however have been forded, for the 
pursuers of the spies were directed to seek them " by the 
fords." Why then was a miracle performed, for which 
there seems to have been no necessity ? 

Mother, There were fords — though, perhaps, not a 
convenient passage for a multitude of men, women, and 
children. Besides, it was the pleasure of the Almighty to 



i 



MONUMENT SET UP IN JORDAN. 135 

indulge the natural timidity of the Israelites, and reprove, 
at the same time, their habitual distrust of his protection. 
But the particular reason assigned for the exhibition of 
this miracle — was "to magnify their new conductor in 
their sight," that they might certainly know that " the 
Lord of Hosts was with Joshua as he had been with 
Moses." All their permanent statutes had been communi- 
cated immediately to Moses, and by that honoured servant 
delivered to the chosen nation. In the prosecution of their 
journey, and the conquest of Canaan, Joshua was likewise 
to be distinguished above his brethren. When he therefore 
commanded the priests to stand still in the river — the 
waters were separated ! He then called the twelve men 
whom he had selected for this service, and directed them 
to pass over before the Ark, carrying with them tv/elve 
stones from the midst of Jordan to the opposite shore. 

The forty thousand from the tribes of Reuben, of Gad 
and Manasseh, then led the van, and the whole congrega- 
tion of Israel followed. Twelve stones were set up in the 
bed of the river, where the sacred Tabernacle rested — the 
priests still w^aiting until all was finished. At the command 
of Joshua, they then came up out of the channel of the 
river, and the waters returned to their place, " overflowing 
all their banks as they did before !" That night they en- 
camped between Jordan and Jericho, at a place called 
Gilgal, and there the twelve stones which they had borne 
from the midst of the channel were erected for a testimony 
to their children of the miracle they had witnessed, when 
they should ask in time to come — " What mean these 
stones ?" And " that all the people of the earth might know 
the hand of the Lord, that it is mighty." 

Fanny. If the river were deep as it is represented to 
have been, the twelve stones erected in the midst of it, 
would be covered by the waters, not answering the design 
of a monument. 

Mother, Those which were carried to the eastern bor- 
der, are said to be " such as a man might carry on his 
shoulder." Those which " Joshua set up where the feet 
of the priests stood firm on dry ground" are not so de- 
scribed. They may have been of enormous size, for they 
had thousands of men to labour at the work, and the 



136 PASSOVER IN CANAAX. 

historian assures us, they were yet to be seen, at the time 
of his writinoj. 

o 

The posterity of Abraham began now to realize the 
promise that had been given to their forefathers. Imme- 
diately after their entrance into Canaan, the manna ceased 
to fall, and they feasted on the fruits of that delightful 
land ! And it is remarkable that this event took place at a 
season when they might formally express their gratitude 
by a national act of religious worship — the time of their 
Annual Passover. On the tenth day of the first month, 
they first set their feet on the land of promise — and on the 
fourteenth, according to their law, precisely forty years 
from its institution on the night of their departure from 
Egypt, they celebrated that festival. Thus was the pro- 
phecy delivered to Hoses'^ exactly accomplished. (B. C. 
1451.) 

This last miracle added to all that had gone before, 
operated powerfully in favour of the progress of the Is- 
raelites. The inhabitants of Canaan trembled before the 
omnipotence of the God of Israel — but they did not repent 
of their sins, and endeavour to avert his anger. The king 
of Jericho did not, like his subject, Rahab, submit to the 
appointed conqueror, and make terms for himself and his 
people, but foolishly determined on resistance. His " city 
was straitly shut up, none went out, and none came in ;" they 
trusted in the strength of their bulwark : nor was the singu- 
lar mode of warfare adopted by the Hebrew general, at all 
calculated to weaken their confidence. No preparations 
adapted to a siege could be discerned from the wall of 
Jericho — nothing could be seen, but the formidable invaders 
armed indeed in warlike array with their standards waving 
and bearing their sacred shrine, encircling the city, day 
after day, and returning peaceably at night to their camp. 
No rude noise — not a voice assailed the ear — the solemn 
march was alone interrupted by the sound of trumpets, 
continually blown by the priests who carried the Ark. In 
these mysterious circuits, the superstitious heathens might 
imagine some preparatory ceremony like their own futile 
incantations to propitiate their deities : but while no step 

* Numbers, 14, 33. 



JERICHO TAKEN. 137 

more decidedly hostile was taken, they would still rely on 
their barriers for security. Six days, their flattering hopes 
deceived them — on the seventh, instead of retiring as usual 
after a single circuit, the strangers encompassed the city 
seven times ; at the conclusion of the seventh, a long, and 
louder blast was heard, — the tremendous shout of victory 
ascended to heaven, and the walls of Jericho fell prostrate 
before the Ark of the covenant ! The ministers of divine 
justice poured in on every side, and the astonished in- 
habitants received the punishment decreed to their multi- 
plied offences ! 

Fanny. I hope the promise made to Rahab, was now 
remembered ? 

Mother, It was faithfully observed. She was conduct- 
ed with all her relatives, and all their moveable property, 
to the suburbs of the Hebrew camp. 

Catherine, Why to the suburbs — why not into the 
heart of the camp, where she would be most secure from 
the resentment of her countrymen ? 

Mother, Because aliens might not enter the camp of 
Israel, until they were at least legally purified, which 
could not be done in this moment of confusion. They 
were effectually protected, however; Rahab, herself, be- 
came afterwards a proselyte to the Hebrew religion, and 
married Salmon, a prince of the tribe of Judah, and the 
ancestor in a direct line, of the celebrated David, king of 
Israel. 

Before the city was attacked, it was strictly enjoined, 
that no part of the spoil should be appropriated by any 
individual. The silver and gold — the vessels of brass and 
of iron, were to be reserved for the service of the sanctua- 
ry : all else, to be utterly destroyed by fire : nay, so ex- 
ceedingly obnoxious had it become, for its pre-eminent 
guilt, that a malediction was pronounced on him who 
should attempt to rebuild it. " He shall lay the founda- 
tion thereof (said Joshua) in his first-born, and in his 
youngest son shall he set up the gates of it." 

Soon after the fall of this execrated city, Joshua des- 
patched a small party to take a little place called Ai, on 
the eastern side of Beth-el, a name familiar in the history 
of their ancestor, Jacob. Insignificant, however, as it ap^ 
12* 



138 ACHAN PUNISHED. 

peared to an army accustomed only to victory, they were 
driven back to the plains of Jordan, with the loss of six 
and thirty men. 

Confident of the support of his Sovereign, while obedi- 
ence was rendered to the divine commands — Joshua, at- 
tended by the elders, repaired to the mercy-seat and pros- 
trating themselves, inquired humbly, by what sin they had 
forfeited His wonted protection. The captivating trea- 
sures of Jericho, they were answered, had occasioned 
the crime. An individual had been tempted to violate the 
command. The criminal should be discovered by casting 
the lot, and the goods he had stolen would be found buried 
under his tent. 

The awful investigation was pursued without delay — 
the tribe and the family of the offender were ascertained — 
and lastly, a man named Achan stood charged with the 
guilt of having drawn the displeasure of their beneficent 
Patron on his people. The fact was not to be denied — 
costly robes of Babylonian manufacture, — silver and gold, 
were brought out from his tent, and spread before the 
judges. His guilt thus manifested and acknowledged by 
himself, the unhappy Achan, with his sons and his daugh- 
ters, his cattle and his household goods, together with all 
the forbidden treasures, were committed to the flames ! 

Charles, What ! the innocent children destroyed for 
the guilt of their father ! Such a procedure is very con- 
trary to our notions of equity ! 

Mother, How can we pretend, my dear, to answer for 
their innocence ? The sons and daughters of Achan may 
have participated in his guilt — they may have assisted in 
concealing the treasures. But should it be otherwise in 
this, or in any other instance recorded in scripture, where 
the innocent appear to have suffered with the guilty by the 
express command of a just Sovereign, — our cavils are 
forever prevented by the emphatic question — " shall not 
the Judge of the earth do right ?" Besides, this high act 
of sovereignty is the exclusive prerogative of Deity, and 
never intended for our imitation. The Mosaical law ex- 
pressly delivered the equitable precept — " the father shall 
not be put to death for the children, neither shall the chil- 



LAW INSCRIBED ON MOUNT EBAL. 189 

dren be put to death for the father — every man shall be 
put to death for his own sin.""^ 

But since we are unquestionably taught by our own 
experience, that our personal vices very often involve our 
dearest connexions inevitably in suffering, how careful 
ought each of us to be of our own conduct ! 

After this painful expiation, the town of Ai was taken 
by an ambuscade, the first of which we read in history — 
and the army was gratified with the spoil. 

Catherine. An ambuscade is a deception : was this 
mode of warfare sanctioned by divine command ? 

Mother, It was expressly commanded in this instance ; 
nor are we obliged to refer its vindication to the arbitrary 
laws by which the war upon the Canaanites was directed. 
Stratagems in war are not moral deceptions — they are 
expected by both parties — and both are prepared — so that 
they would be disappointed did they not occur. 

The Israelites being now in the neighbourhood of the 
mountains Ebal and Gerizzim, where they had been com- 
manded by Moses to build an Altar, and promulgate the 
Law, they desisted from the further prosecution of the war 
until that duty was performed. An Altar was erected on 
Mount Ebal, the law was inscribed and sacrifices were 
offered on it. The tribes then divided after the manner 
prescribed by Moses, and took their stations on either 
Mount, the priests standing on each side of the ark, a.nd 
the whole congregated people, women, children, and 
strangers, all attending, the statutes of Moses were read to 
them by Joshua, and the blessings and the cursings were 
pronounced in their hearing."]" 

Whilst they were thus piously engaged, the Canaanitish 
princes were combining to attack the Israelites, regarded 
with so much terror ! At the same time an embassy, with 
all the appearance of having travelled from a very distant 
country, arrived at the camp at Gilgal, soliciting the 
friendship of Joshua. Knowing himself to be surrounded 
by enemies, he inquired particularly whence they came. 
" From a far distant country," they said, and they exhi- 
bited their faded garments and worn-out sandals — their 

* Deut. 34, 16. t Deut. 27. 



140 GIBEONITES DECEIVE THE PRIESTS. 

wine-bottles, now empty, and rent with long use, and their 
bread which they had taken fresh from their ovens, now 
moulded — as evidences of the length of their journey. 

Fanny, These bottles, which are said to have been 
rent^ must have been the leathern bottles which were in 
use in ancient times. 

Mother, They are still in use, not only for carrying 
wine, in several countries of the East, and in the South 
of Europe, but for the transportation of honey and other 
liquids, especially for water in their dreary journeys across 
the deserts of Arabia. 

Fanny, Were not bottles of glass also used by the Is- 
raelites ? 

Mother, They are said to have been invented only in 
the fifteenth century. Earthen bottles are supposed to 
have been used in very early times. 

The people of Israel were somewhat suspicious of the 
integrity of these Envoys — yet, without asking that 
" counsel," which the mystic breast-plate of the High 
Priest would have imparted, the princes made a league 
with them. But they were awakened to a sense of their 
erroneous precipitancy, when in a ^ew days they received 
an application from their new allies imploring their aid 
against the neighbouring kings, who had turned their arms 
against them, because they had deserted the league against 
the strangers, and made a peace with their chiefs. This 
discovery exasperated the common people, especially when 
they learned that Gibeon, the chief city of the impostors, 
was very large and wealthy, and they would have taken 
instant vengeance, had they not been restrained by their 
officers. " We have plighted our faith (said they) to pro- 
tect them : we must therefore let them live ; but they shall 
not be admitted to the dignities of free citizens — " they 
shall be hewers of wood and drawers of water to the con- 
gregation — because they have deceived us." 

The army of Joshua, appeased in some degree by this 
compromise, yielded to the pressing entreaty of the Gibeon- 
ites — " come up quickly and save us, for all the kings of 
the Amorites that dwell in the mountains are gathered toge- 
ther against us." But the Amorites, though they fought 



SUN AND MOON "STAND STILL." 141 

desperately for their lives, could make no stand against the 
invincible Israelites. They fled and drew the pursuers 
from the open plain into their valleys and mountams. 
Evening approached, and Joshua beheld his people in the 
heart of a country entirely unknown to them — the dark- 
ness of night might enable their adversaries to surround 
them — and all might be lost before the return of day. In 
this perilous situation he ventured to lift up his hands to 
Jehovah, the Lord of the Universe, and implore his imme- 
diate interposition—" Sun stand thou still (cried he) upon 
Gibeon — and thou Moon in the valley of Ajalon !" His 
prayer was heard, the Sun stood still, and the Moon rested, 
the whole length of a day — the elements of nature contri- 
buted their aid — hail-stones of enormous size descended, 
and together with the heaven-directed sword of Joshua, 
completed the slaughter of the devoted Amorites ! 

Charles, Dear mother, you cannot believe that the sun 
and the moon were literally stayed in their course? 

Mother. Why should I question the reality of this mi- 
racle more than 'that of others? Our ir^i-girie.tir.n cannct 
reach the immensity of unlimited power, to which all 
things are possible. Nor is this stupendous prodigy repre- 
sented as of common occurrence. The inspired writer 
affirms, that " there was no day like that either before, or 
since, that the Lord hearkened in such an extraordinary 
manner to the voice of a man," and he confirms his own 
relation by an appeal to another record — " the book of 
Jasher." 

Fanny. Where is that book to be found ? 

Mother. It has been lost many ages ; but that it once 
existed, is plain from the frequent mention of it in sacred 
history. 

These unquestionable indications of the splendid destiny 
of this peculiar people, did not yet intimidate the natives 
of Canaan. 

Other confederacies were formed and successively sub- 
dued. Six or seven years were spent in continual warfare, 
until one and thirty kingdoms were taken, when far ad- 
vanced in years, and having yet to make arrangements for 
the future government of Israel, Joshua " rested from war." 
The first work of this interval of peace, was to provide a 



142 TABERNACLE ESTABLISHED. 

place for public worship. Shiloh, in the portion of Ephraim, 
was chosen, and there the Tabernacle was established in 
the presence of the whole nation, and from this epoch the 
Israelites began to reckon their year of Jubilee. 

Although much of the territory remained yet to be con- 
quered, the venerable chief of Israel, persuaded of the 
faithfulness of the Lord of hosts, considered the whole as 
already in their possession, and proceeded to the division 
of Canaan, agreeably to the directions left by Moses. The 
coast of the Great Sea or Mediterranean, from Philistia, 
on the south, to Phognicia on the north, was still inhabited 
by idolaters — but commissioners were nevertheless sent to 
examine and describe in writing, the whole land. When 
they returned, the whole was divided, and solemnly distri- 
buted by lot before the Tabernacle at Shiloh. 

Cities of refuge at the same time were appointed, and 
provision made for the Levites, who you will recollect, 
were not to have a common inheritance in lands like the 
other tribes. 

The immediate superintendence of the Deity over this 
remarkable people, is in no respect more evident than in 
this ; that after the lapse of ages, and under circumstances 
the least favourable to the preservation of records, and 
all the observations requisite to that end — they should now 
be able to trace their genealogies throughout the twelve 
tribes, and distribute the component families so exactly, 
that Joshua could arrange them in the order commanded 
by Moses, separating the tribes distinctly, and providing 
equally for all. 

Catherine, I have heard you question the lawfulness of 
dividing by lot ; and yet in this instance it is sanctioned 
by the highest authority. 

Mother, If w^e could, in any case, obtain such a sanc- 
tion, and cast lots with the same solemnity that was ob- 
served in this, and other instances, mentioned in scripture, 
that is, by a direct appeal to Heaven for the result, the ac- 
tion would not be unlawful. But we think of no such re- 
ference ; our appeal is to something called Chance ; a 
perfect non-entity ; an act of great levity at least, if not 
sacrilegeous. Because no event can possibly take place 



PROPHECY OF JACOB. 143 

without the permission of a Sovereign whose government 
is as immediate as it is universal. 

The result of all our operations in the common affairs 
of life, we know, remains with Him : but while we employ 
our physical strength, or natural ability, we use the talents 
he has given. In casting a lot, we are endeavouring to 
obtain a benefit without using the appointed means. 

Although I have told you that we are not immediately 
concerned in the blessings or predictions v/hich Jacob pro- 
nounced on his sons at the time of his death, and have 
therefore left you to read the full accomplishment at your 
leisure, yet I will not deny your curiosity the gratification 
of remarking in this place, and hereafter, as it may inci- 
dentally occur, the striking coincidences between the fore- 
sight of the patriarch and the allotment of Joshua now 
more than two hundred years afterwards. 

" Simeon and Levi," he said, should be " divided in 
Jacob and scattered in Israel." In the distribution of the 
lands, Simeon had a lot within that portion afterwards 
called by the single title of Judah ; which being insuffi- 
cient for their support,^ a detachment of that tribe emi- 
grated southward, in quest of more ample habitations, 
until they discovered a fi.ne tract of pasture ground, of 
which they took peaceable possession: whilst another 
party, proceeding still farther south, towards Mount Seir, 
made war upon the Amalekites and obtained their lands. 
Thus was Simeon " scattered in Israel." But of Levi, 
the prediction was literally fulfilled. Being devoted'to the 
ministry, the Levites were not to cultivate the land, but 
had dwellings assio^ned to them throuohout all Israel — 
that they might conveniently instruct, whilst they were 
maintained by the nation. Of Asher, it was said — " His 
bread shall be fat, and he shall yield royal dainties ;" lan- 
guage, which imports wealth, and abundance. According- 
ly we find the tribe of Asher in a rich district, bordering 
on the great city of Tyre, whose inhabitants no doubt 
were often supplied from his fields, and the table of their 
luxurious kings furnished with " royal dainties." Of 
Zebulon, — " he shall dwell at the haven of the Sea — and 

* 1 Chron. 4. 39—43. 



144 ALLIES DISMISSED. 

shall be a haven for ships :" and the lot of Zebulon stretch- 
ed from the sea of Galilee to the Mediterranean, where 
they had commodious sea-ports. 

Fanny, You have not mentioned the death of Caleb, 
who was permitted to enter into the promised land. Was 
he yet alive at the period of your story ? 

Mother, He was; and now presented himself before 
Joshua and the elders, reminding them of the engagement 
of Moses to give him the mountain of Kirjath-Arba — the 
land of the Giants, because he had traversed it without 
fear, when he was sent with the ten traitorous spies. He 
was now eighty-five years of age, yet (he said) he was 
strong, and able to drive out the natives. To him, there- 
fore, Kirjath-Arba, including the city of Hebron, the vene- 
rated spot where Abraham and Isaac had sojourned, was 
allotted. The eminent services of Joshua too were reward- 
ed by the special gift of a favourite place in mount 
Ephraim. 

The forty thousand warriors from the tribes on the 
eastern side of Jordan, who had served all this time in the 
war, were now dismissed to their families, with great com- 
mendation for their fidelity to their brethren. The riches 
they had acquired from the spoils of their enemies they 
were commanded to divide with those who had remained 
at home and protected their wives and children in their 
absence—'" But take diligent heed" (said the venerable 
chief when he gave them his parting blessing) " to do the 
commandments and the law which Moses the servant of 
the Lord charged you, to love the Lord your God, and to 
walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, and 
to cleave unto him, and to serve him with all your heart 
and with all your soul." 

But when, on their return, they had passed the river, 
they began to feel that they were separated from their 
brethren ! While the present generation lived, their services 
would be remembered, and their right to worship at Shiloh 
would be acknowledged ; but the posterity of those who 
possessed the Ark of the Covenant^ the pledge of a peculiar 
relationship to the God of Israel, and in whose territories 
other national monuments were found, might possibly deny 
to the tribes on the other side of Jordan the privileges of a 



ALTAR OF WITNESS. 145 

son of Israel. To avert this catastrophe, which they con- 
sidered the greatest of evils, they set up an altar of great 
dimensions on the eastern border, exactly resembling that 
which stood afc Shiloh, and called it " an altar of witness." 
This action, so pious and so patriotic, was mistaken by 
their brethren. They considered it a breach of the law, 
and obnoxious to exemplary punishment. The whole army 
was therefore immediately collected to make war upon 
Reuben and Gad. Compassion hov/ever succeeded to the 
first impulse of indignation, and they concluded to inquire 
into the matter before they shed the blood of their brother. 
Phinehas the son of Eleazer the High Priest, and other 
chiefs of the congregation, were sent on this reasonable 
errand. " We are come," (said they to the two tribes and 
half tribe) " to inquire why ye have committed so great a 
trespass. Have we not already suffered for the sins of 
those who rebelled against Jehovah ? Will ye again involve 
us in distress, by offering sacrifices in the land of Gilead 
in opposition to the law of Moses ? If ye think your land 
is polluted by the sins of your predecessors, and ye are be- 
come dissatisfied with the place of your own choice, come 
over to the land where the Tabernacle dwelleth, and take 
possession among us : but rebel not against the Lord, nor 
rebel against us, in building you an altar beside the altar 
of the Lord our God." 

Charles, I suppose now the two and half tribes were 
disposed to resent so harsh an accusation. 

Mother, Those who are conscious of the purity of their 
intentions, my son, are generally less ready to resent than 
to grieve, v/hen their actions are misunderstood. The 
eastern tribes on this occasion were astonished at the ex- 
postulation of the elders ; but they meekly answered, that 
" the searcher of all hearts could witness for them that they 
thought not of rebellion against him ! They meant not to 
offer burnt-offerings or peace-offerings, on the altar they had 
reared ; but to testify to posterity their relation to the God 
of Israel, if in time to come their children should be denied 
access to the Tabernacle, on the pretext that they were ex- 
cluded by the permanent barrier of Jordan." " God forbid," 
said they, in the conclusion of their pious defence, " that 
we should build an altar for sacrifices, beside the altar of 
13 



146 LAST ADDRESS OP J0SHT7A. 

the Lord our God, that is before his Tabernacle." With 
this explanation, the elders returned perfectly satisfied, and 
their brethren offered thanks to the Lord, who had merci- 
fully preserved them from shedding the blood of their re- 
latives. 

After these transactions, Joshua lived seven years, du- 
ring which time no events worthy of particular notice seem 
to have occurred. The people were peaceably occupied in 
settling their new possessions without interruption from the 
natives. — He had now reached his hundred and tenth year, 
seventeen of which he had presided ; and being sensible 
that he must soon sleep with his fathers, after the example 
of his illustrious predecessor, he summoned the whole na- 
tion with their officers of every department, to attend him 
at Shechem, between Ebal and Gerizzim, and receive his 
last blessing and instructions. The recollection of many 
and inestimable favours, will always be a powerful incentive 
in a generous mind, to the performance of correspondent 
duties. To this noble feeling the Hebrew general judicious- 
ly applied, whilst he began his address to the listening 
multitude by relating briefly, the history of their nation 
from the calling of Abraham to the present day — the super- 
natural power by which they had been sustained — and the 
unceasing mercy which had at length given them posses- 
sion of" cities which they did not build — of vineyards and 
olive trees not planted by their hands." " Now therefore," 
continued he, " fear the Lord, and serve him in sincerity 
and in truth : and put away the gods which your fathers 
served on the other side of the flood and in Egypt ; and 
serve ye the Lord." 

" And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose 
you this day whom you will serve ; whether the gods 
which your fathers served, or the gods of the Amorites in 
whose land ye dwell : but as for me and my house, we will 
serve the Lord,'''' 

Catherine, I hope the advice of Joshua " to put away" 
the gods whom their fathers had served, did not imply that 
the Israelites were at this time addicted to idolatry ? 

Mother, It can mean no less. I have heretofore ob- 
served to you the unhappy propensity of the Israelites to 
imitate the heathens. These people were ever with them, 



LAST ADDRESS OF JOSHUA. 147 

and around them. — Abraham their progenitor, was taken 
from the people who served idols " on the other side of the 
flood," or, on the other side of the river Euphrates, which 
being a great river was sometimes called, the flood. In 
Egypt his posterity were subjected to idolaters, and occa- 
sionally mingled with them in the wilderness. No won- 
der then that such multiplied temptations were oflen too 
powerful. 

Yet you are not to suppose that they ever entirely for- 
sook their own Omnipotent Sovereign; their error con- 
sisted in giving to the gods of the gentiles, together with 
Jehovah, that homage which was due to Him alone. Hence, 
they were ever ready to profess their allegiance and pro- 
mise amendment. When, therefore, their departing gene- 
ral reminded them of the obligation they were under, yet 
added, in order to place their sinful weakness in a forcible 
light,—" if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord — choose 
ye this day whom ye will serve — but as for me and my 
house, loe will serve the Lord^"— they cried out with one 
accord — " God forbid that we should forsake the Lord to 
serve other gods. He it is, that brought us up, and our 
fathers out of the house of bondage, and which did these 
great signs in our sight, and preserved us in all the way 
which we went — therefore^ will we also serve the Lord^ 
for He is our God." 

This was a most interesting moment — Joshua was about 
to leave them to themselves, and in this last public inter- 
view with his charge, he was particularly desirous to make 
a lasting impression. He would not therefore easily accept 
of their proffered devotion. " Ye cannot" (said he) " serve 
the Lord^ — for he is an holy God — he is a jealous God, he 
will not forgive your transgressions nor your sins, if ye 
forsake the Lord and serve strange gods, then he will turn 
and do you hurt, and consume you after that he hath done 
you good." Still, however, full of ardour, they continued 
to declare — " Nay, but we will serve the Lord." Thus 
was the covenant to serve the Lord again ratified by the 
whole people of Israel. A record of the transaction was 
made by Joshua, and a great stone set up for a memorial, 
under an oak near the sanctuary at Shiloh. 



148 DEATH OF JOSHUA. 

Soon after this Joshua died, and was buried in his own 
territory on mount Ephraim. Eleazer the priest, the son 
of Aaron, died also about this time ; and at the same period 
we are told the remains of Joseph were entombed in a 
piece of ground which Jacob his father had purchased 
from the natives when he returned from his long exile in 
Mesopotamia, and which had now fallen to the lot of 
Ephraim. (B. C. 1443.) 

Charles, The title of this book I suppose implies its 
having been written by Joshua ? 

Mother, It is so understood by some learned commen- 
tators, who have moreover endeavoured to establish their 
opinion by internal evidence — excepting, however, some 
passages which were evidently inserted by some other 
hand, in a subsequent period of time, particularly that 
which relates the death of Joshua. Other names of equal 
weight contend, that this portion of history was called the 
book of Joshua because it narrates the exploits of that 
chief: and they also appeal to internal evidence that he 
was not the author, but conjecture rather — for none under- 
take to decide — that it was written by Eleazer, by Phine- 
has his son, or by the prophet Samuel, and some reduce 
its date still lower. But whoever was the author, it is 
agreed on all hands, that if not written chiefly by the great 
captain of the Israelites, it was compiled from authentic 
documents, left by Joshua himself, or the cotemporary 
priests whose business it was to preserve the records of 
the nation.* 

* See Gray*s Key. Home's Introduction, &c. 



( 149) 



JUDGES. 



Mother. The Israelites, by the death of Joshua, being 
left without a visible leader to the conquest of Canaan, 
now repaired to the tabernacle, with the question — " Who 
shall go up first to fight with the Canaanites." They were 
answered, " Judah shall go up first." Judah was the fourth 
son of Jacob, and to him the natural prerogatives of Reu- 
ben the elder were transferred. He was distinguished by 
his father's prophetic blessing, and from him were to come 
the Star and the Sceptre foretold by Balaam. The tribe 
of Judah was the most populous of the twelve, when the 
people were all numbered in the wilderness of Sinai, by 
Moses and Aaron ; and the district of Canaan which fell to 
their lot, was amongst the most delightful of the land of 
promise. 

It was beautifully variegated with fountains, hills, and 
plains, and fertile in corn, and wine, and pastures. Here 
Abraham and Isaac had sojourned, and here were the places 
most famous in sacred history, Jerusalem, Emmaus, Beth- 
lehem, and others. In the territory of Judah the splendid 
temple of Solomon arose, and it was his privilege to pre- 
serve the pure rehgion of his fathers, when in after ages 
it was corrupted by many of the tribes : and indeed such 
was the ascendency of this tribe that we frequently find 
the appellation of Judah ^ applied to the nation, in common 
with that of Israel, 

The lot of Simeon lying next, and within that of Judah, 
the two portions occupying the whole south of Canaan, 
between the Dead Sea and the Mediterranean, they agreed 
to combine their forces, until both should be in possession 
of the territory assigned to them. 

Canaan was at this time powerful in population and arms. 

It was governed by a great number of chiefs, with the 

pompous title of kings ; although their respective dominions 

seem often to have been limited to a single city and its 

13* 



150 CANAAN CONQUERED. 

suburbs. One of these petty kings was found on the first 
expedition of Judah, in a place called Bezek ; his troops 
were beaten, and himself taken, and sent to end his days 
in Jerusalem, a few miles distant from Bezek, after his 
thumbs and great toes had been cut off. 

Charles, That was a singular infliction ! How came 
the Israelites to perpetrate so useless a cruelty ? 

Mother, The confession of Adoni-bezek will at once 
answer your question, and let you a little into the charac- 
ter of the Canaanites, and you will thereby be induced to 
acquiesce in the retributive justice which exterminated such 
monsters. '' Threescore and ten kings," (said this tyrant) 
" having their thumbs and great toes cut off, gathered their 
meat under my table — as I have done, so God requited me !" 
The Israelites had heard of these enormities, and therefore 
inflicted the same punishments on him. 

In the valleys of Simeon and Judah were found a power- 
ful people, armed with chariots of iron, whom they could 
not at that time expel. In the portion of Caleb, who be- 
longed to the favoured tribe, were the giants, or men of 
extraordinary strength and stature. To encourage his 
brethren to the formidable encounter, he proclaimed his in- 
tention of bestowing Acash his daughter on him who should 
succeed in taking one of their strong holds, called Kirjath- 
sepher. Othneil, who afterwards became still more con- 
spicuous for his valour and wisdom, obtained the prize. 

Thus the Israelites, by degrees, took possession of their 
inheritance. But indolence, the spontaneous fruit of pros- 
perity, or compassion — in this instance not allowed — some- 
times prevailed over duty. They spared many of the na- 
tives, whose abominable examples corrupted their manners 
and enfeebled their hands. Conflicts with the neighbour- 
ing princes ensued, and war, with all its train of evils — 
desolation, famine, and captivity, was the consequence. 

These unhappy circumstances, however, did not take 
place until long after the death of Joshua. The generation 
which his mighty prowess had led into Canaan remember- 
ed his dying injunctions, and kept the statutes of Moses. 
But their children " forsook the Lord God of their fathers" 
—they intermarried with the inhabitants of the land, and 
erected altars to their fabled deities. Their morals and 



JUDGES. 151 

religion equally degenerating, the consciousness of virtue 
no longer inspired them with courage to resist the encroach- 
ments of the heathens, who still considering them as law- 
less invaders, were ever ready to seize an occasion of dis- 
tressing them, so that in the emphatic language of the 
historian, " Whithersoever they went, the hand of the 
Lord was against them for evil !" Yet the everlasting 
friend of Abraham and Isaac would not wholly abandon 
his people notwithstanding their repeated provocations, but 
chastised them by the hands of their enemies, and when 
the salutary purpose of affliction was accomplished, a deep 
sense of their ungrateful apostacy and a sincere return to 
their Sovereign was effected. He raised up by extraordinary 
interposition, deliverers^ who restored them to peace and 
prosperity. 

These deliverers were the celebrated Judges^ from 
whom the book w^e are reciting is denominated. 

Fanny. A judge is with us a civil officer, but those of 
whom you speak, seem to have been military leaders; 
why then are they called Judges ? 

Mother, Their office was both civil and military. They 
led the troops to battle, and afterwards held the sword of 
justice. Some of them may have retired to private life, 
when they had performed the public service for which 
they were especially selected ; but, generally, they were 
the chief magistrates of the people whilst they lived. They 
assumed, however, no external pomp, nor did their hon- 
ours descend to their children. They were taken from 
the tribes indiscriminately, and qualified for their part, 
when emergencies required a chief of extraordinary abili- 
ties. 

Under the government of the Judges, the Israelites lived 
upwards of three centuries with various fortunes ; some- 
times harassed and afflicted most grievously by the neigh- 
bouring powers, sometimes prosperous and happy for a 
succession of years. Othniel, whose valour had obtained 
the hand of the venerable Caleb's daughter, was the first 
of these illustrious chieftains. Ehud and Shamgar suc- 
cessively flourished after Othniel. Very few events of 
their lives are recorded, but they were no doubt virtuous 
and efficient men ; for in their days the Israelites enjoyed 



152 jabin's army destroyed. 

long intervals of peace, the certain evidence under their 
peculiar dispensation, of national rectitude. 

About this period v^e find two women celebrated as the 
instruments of great benefit to their country. 

After the death of Shamgar, the sins of Israel had 
brought them under the dominion of Jabin, a powerful 
king of Canaan. Penitence as usual obtained mercy, and 
to Deborah the wife of Lapidoth, at once a Judge and a 
prophetess, a plan of deliverance was graciously impart- 
ed. To her rural dwelHng among the palm-trees of mount 
Ephraim, the chiefs of Israel came on some common occa- 
sion for advice, and were sent away to summon Barak the 
son of Abinoam to her tent. Barak was a young prince 
of Naphtali, and had been named to Deborah as the leader 
of an expedition against Jabin. He was now commanded 
to take ten thousand men from the tribes of Naphtali and 
Zebulon, and march to the river Kishon, where he v/ould 
find the army of Jabin encamped. This was an unwel- 
come order to Barak, notwithstanding it was accompanied 
with a promise of success. He knew the strength of 
Jabin, and even refused to attack him, unless the prophe- 
tess herself would go with him to the field, assist him by 
her counsel, and animate the troops by her presence. She 
readily consented to his desire; but told him, that his 
guilty reluctance would be requited by humiliation, for the 
chief honour of the day would be obtained by a woman ! 
He did not however any longer delay to contribute his 
services, but hastened with Deborah to Mount Tabor in 
the district of Zebulon, and collected the troops. His 
preparations soon aroused Sisera the general of the enemy, 
who with a numerous host, well appointed with weapons 
of destruction, amongst which were nine hundred chariots 
of iron, descended to the valley of Kishon. '^' Now is the 
moment," cried the heroic Deborah to her associate, 
" hath not the Lord gone out before thee?" Inspirited by 
this suggestion, Barak immediately fell upon the Canaan- 
ites and swept them off with a terrible slaughter ! Their 
chariots of iron were a feeble defence against the per- 
severing courage of Barak : the whole army was destroy- 
ed, and the despairing Sisera himself compelled to aban- 
don the field, and endeavour to save his own life ! Leav- 



DEATH OF SISEHA. 153 

ing his chariot, he fled towards a district inhabited by the 
descendants of Hobab, the brother-in-law of Moses, who 
had left their own country and dwelt amongst the Naph- 
talites. In this extremity he was met by Jael the wife of 
Heber, near the door of her house, and invited to accept 
its protection. As the Kenites, the denomination of this 
colony, were at peace with the king of Hazor, Sisera fear- 
lessly entered, entreating his hostess to conceal the place 
of his retreat, and to give him a cup of water to drink. 
The better to allay any apprehension that might arise 
from the avowed friendship of her people to the Israelites, 
the wife of Heber presented a bowl of refreshing milk to 
the wearied warrior. Confiding now in her officious kind- 
ness, and overpowered by disappointment and vain exer- 
tion, he fell into a slumber, to awaken no more ! for Jael 
seized the opportunity and put him to death by her own 
adventurous hand ! 

Fanny. I presume, mother, you do not vindicate the 
treachery of Jael to a vanquished man who had confided 
in her honour. Her masculine resolution is, in my mind, 
no apologv for her cruelty. 

Mother, You are not ignorant, my dear, that wars 
were formerly conducted by every nation with unrelenting 
severity. It is a peculiar glory of our amiable rehgion that 
it has abolished unnecessary violence, and strictly enjoins 
tenderness to our enemies so far as it can possibly consist 
with our own safety. Very many of those brilliant actions 
that have inscribed the names of heroes on the tablets of 
fame would be detestable in our view of moral obligation. 
These remarks, however, although they may serve to pal- 
liate the conduct of many celebrated men in both sacred 
and profane history, may not, perhaps, be applicable to 
the case of Jael, any more than they would be to some 
acts of the Israelites in their contests with the natives of 
Canaan, which are repugnant to our opinions. He who 
commanded the end, directed also the means : and here we 
must rest the vindication of Jael, who is believed by cor- 
rect commentators to have been moved by a divine impulse 
to put Sisera to death. This victory over the king of Ha- 
zor, was a great blessing to the suffering Israelites. Sise- 
ra, his captain, was the hated instrument of his tyranny ; 



154 SONG OF DEBORAH AND BARAK. 

the zeal of Heber's wife in the cause of religion and 
liberty, was therefore celebrated in rapturous gratitude by 
Deborah and Barak in the sacred Song* which they com- 
posed for this remarkable deliverance. As you were 
pleased with my versification of Moses's hymn, I have 
thrown this into the same form for your entertainment. 

SONG OF DEBORAH AND BARAK. 

Praised be the Lord, the high, the holy one, 
Who Israel's son avenged — Himself alone. 
Our willing hands the sacred banners raise, 
Thine is the cause, be thine, our God, the praise ! 

Hear, O ye princes — O ye kings, give ear. 
Sing praise to Israel's God ; adore and fear. 
When Thou went forth from Edom's smoking field. 
The heavens bow'd down, the clouds their droppings yield. 
Seir's dewy mount thy awful presence felt. 
Its bases tremble, and its summits melt ! 

From Israel's hills unhallowed altars rise ; 
Then wasting wars the guilty land chastise. 
In valiant Shamgar's rule, and Jael's days. 
Oppressed Israel walked in secret ways : 
From wonted paths they turn in fearful haste. 
Their towns deserted, and their fields laid waste ! 
Vengeance, they cry in vain — of all berefl, 
" With forty thousand not a spear was left." 
Then heaven-appointed Deborah arose, 
To rescue Jacob, and chastise his foes. 
From Tabor's sides the awakened people pour, 
And fill the plain of Kishon's wide-spread shore. 
The chiefs of Israel to the combat came. 
Led by Jehovah. Praise his mighty name I 
Speak ye his w^ondrous deeds, who ride in state, 
Who sit in judgment in the lofty gate.f 
Speak ye, whose happy villages are freed. 
Whose flocks beside your wells securely feed. 
No more the -archer's shout your ears assail. 
Rings through the hills, and saddens every vale. 
Barak, arise ! Lead on — in triumph lead. 
The captive princes, and the prancing steed. 
Mother in Israel ! Deborah, awake. 
Judgment, renown, and wide dominion take ! 
Why Reuben didst thou in the sheep-fold stay. 
The bleatings of thy flocks, what charms had they ! 

* Judges, Chap. 5. 
t The gate of the city— where anciently judgment was dispensed. 



\ 



SONG OP ^DEBORAH AND BARAK. 155 

Asher beside the Sea secure remained ; 
His freighted ships ignoble Dan detained. 
Gilead from far, beheld the hostile scene, 
While Jordan's peaceful current roll'd between. 

Thy patriot warriors, Zebulon, were they, 
Who dared the battle that disastrous day ! 
Thy chiefs, too, Naphtali, were they who fought, 
On Tabor's heights they set their lives at nought. 
Canaan's impious princes came from far, 
Megiddo's waters saw the unrighteous war. 
Vainly they strove — the coursing stars can tell : 
They fought for Israel, when bold Sisera fell ! 
Kishon, that ancient stream, avenging roars, 
And sweeps the invaders from his blood-stained shores. 

Awake, my soul ! thy mighty deeds rehearse, 
But curse ye Meroz — said the angel, — curse ! 
They came not to the battle of the Lord, 
Nor in Jehovah's honour drew a sword. 

Blessed beyond the lot of woman's fame, 
Be Heber's wife — illustrious her name ! 
The deadly implements her hands impel. 
And at her feet proud Sisera bov\^ed — he fell ! 

Ah, hapless mother ! thou inquir'st in vain, 
What direful cause his chariot-v\'^heel3 detain ? 
Her ladies answer — she herself replies. 
While fearful visions in her bosom rise : 
" Comes not my son in gorgeous robes arrayed, 
The victor's spoil, of curious texture made. 
Do captive iTiaids the conqueror's triumph grace, 
The blooming daughters of that hated race ?" 

As Sisera, be thine enemies, O Lord ! 
While those who love and trust thy holy v/ord, 
Shine like the sun, progressive in his strength. 
And reach thy glorious mount of peace at length. 

Fanny, Difficult as it is to reconcile our present notions 
with the conduct of Jaei — or indeed to the participation of 
women in warlike exploits at all, I must plume myself on 
Deborah. The appointment of a woman to the dignity of 
a ruler and a prophet, by unerring wisdom, is in favour 
of my opinion, that the m.ental powers of the sexes are 
naturally equal. 

Mother. This is a question, my dear, which we can 
never determine until their natural powers are alike culti- 
vated by education. So long as one-and-twenty years are 
unremittingly given to the improvement of the one, and 
not more than half that time to the other, and that besideai 



156 INVASION OF THE MIDIANITE9. 

in a desultory manner, it will be altogether unfair to esti- 
mate the minds of men and women by their subsequent 
conduct. 

That the Creator has separated their respective spheres 
of action by a line almost impassable, there ought to be no 
question, and perhaps the entire devotion of females to stu- 
dy for so many years, might be somewhat incompatible 
with their peculiar destination; still we may be allowed to 
contend that a largo portion of knowledge, the early and 
careful improvement of every talent, is necessary to qualify 
women for the useful discharge of those duties — as well as 
to sustain them under the safferings to v/hich they are pe- 
culiarly liable. Neglected as they are, and unfurnished 
with adequate armour, they often meet the ills of life with 
surprising fortitude, and have even governed empires with 
ability. I cannot, however, gratify you with the elevation 
of another female besides Deborah, in this period of sacred 
history. A female sovereign arose some centuries after in 
Israel, but we derive no honour from her character. 

A peace of forty years succeeding to the victory of Ba- 
rak, great prosperity blessed the land. Their granaries 
were filled with corn, and wine, and oil, and their pastures 
offered a rich repast to the lav»dess tribes on their borders. 
The Midianites poured in upon them wn'th immense herds 
of cattle, and laid waste the whole south of Canaan. Their 
grain was cut up as soon as it appeared, or if perchance 
a small portion was suffered to ripen, the harassed owners 
were obliged to conceal it in caves which they dug out of 
the mountains, and at length to fortify themselves with 
their scanty provisions in these wretched dens. 

Charles, Why did the Israelites, who were always able 
to cope successfully v/ith their enemies, submit to such 
cruelties ? 

Mother, The Israelites in this interval had returned to 
idolatry, to which they were ever prone in a season of re- 
pose. Vicious practices debase the whole soul, and render 
it unable to make any noble effort. When the Israelites 
fell into idolatry, they were always punished by an abject 
disposition to submit to their oppressors. And thus they 
did in this Instance, until seven years of severe suffering 
had brought them to a sense of their criminality. '' The 



GIDEON APPOINTED. 157 

angel of the Lord" then appeared to Gideon, a man of the 
house of Manasseh, whilst he thrashed a little wheat in a 
secluded place that he might hide it from the Midianites. 
''The Lord is- with thee, thou mighty man of valour," 
was the reviving salutation of the bright messenger. But 
Gideon was not revived — the excessive sufferings of his 
people had impressed his mind with the sad persuasion, 
that the posterity of Jacob was entirely forsaken by the 
Power that had wrought such miracles for their fathers ! 
"Surely, / will be with thee," continued the heavenly 
herald, " and thou shalt smite the Midianites as one man." 
Still suspicious that the flattering vision might be but a 
delusive effort of his own misery to procure relief — he 
ventured to ask a sign that he was not imposed upon 
by his rising hope, but was really encouraged by a super- 
natural voice. The sign was granted, and the grateful 
Gideon immediately erected an altar on the spot, which, 
the historian assures us, was yet to be seen at the time of 
his writing. 

Charles, Why do you use a term so specific when 
you say " the angel of the Lord." Are we not told that 
the Lord employs angels innumerable as the ministers of 
his will ? 

Mother, When the article the is emphatically used, as 
it is in this place and many others, it is not to be applied 
to one of those ministering spirits, but to that august per- 
sonage, of whom it is said, " Thy throne, O God, is forever 
and ever." By a comparison of various scriptures, it 
appears that " the angel of the Lord," who often spoke to 
the patriarchs, to Moses, and to Joshua, was the same un- 
created being who led his church through the wilderness. 
Sometimes he is called the angel, or " the messenger of 
the covenant," because he was the Mediator of the cove- 
nant between God and man. And this was He who now 
demonstrated his authority by a miracle, and inspired 
Gideon w^ith courage to liberate his country. Entirely 
assured of divine aid in his patriotic undertaking, he took 
his servants the same night and demolished an altar of 
Baal, which his ow^n father had erected, and cut down the 
grove that surrounded it. This resolute commencement 
of his mission incensed the inhabitants — Gideon was 
14 



158 MIDIANITES VANaUISHED. 

charged with the demolition of their idolatrous temple, and 
fiercely demanded of his father that he might be put to 
death ! But Gideon had gone forth to arouse his country- 
men — the war trump had sounded, and the people were 
flocking by thousands to the standard of Gideon ! A se- 
cond miracle being vouchsafed to confirm the confidence 
of the chosen leader, he went on to organize his army, 
and found himself at the head of two and thirty thousand 
men, whilst the Midianites and their allies, the Amalekites, 
stretched along the valley of Jezreel " like grasshoppers 
in multitude," and their camels so numerous, that they 
are compared to " the sands on the sea-shore." The Israel- 
ites, above all people, were required to remember that they 
were under the immediate government of Jehovah. That 
they might not therefore attribute their success to their 
own prowess, Gideon was commanded to retain but three 
hundred of his adherents, and dismiss the rest to their 
homes. This little company he divided into three bands 
and equipt every man with a trumpet in one hand, and a 
lamp, concealed in a pitcher, in the other ; directing them 
to observe him carefully, and follow his example. He then 
descended into the valley, and stationed them on three 
sides of the hostile camp. It was night, and the Midian- 
ites had set their watch and gone to sleep. Suddenly, a 
loud blast from the trumpets of Gideon awakened them, 
and whilst they wondered whence the sound might pro- 
ceed, the pitchers were all broken in an instant, and a 
blaze of light flashed upon their half-opened eyes. Terror 
succeeded to surprise, and the tremendous shout of " the 
sword of the Lord and of Gideon" completed their con- 
sternation ! Believing themselves attacked by a numerous 
army, and bewildered in the darkness of midnight, they 
fled in confusion, slaying one another as they went. 
Careless of all but their lives, they left their camp full of 
gold and jewels, the gorgeous ornaments of their own 
persons and of their camels, to enrich the conquerors'. 
Messengers were quickly despatched to raise the surround- 
ing country — the fords of Jordan, towards which the in- 
vaders fled, were guarded, and a terrible slaughter of the 
intercepted multitudes ensued. Pursuing his victory, 
Gideon passed the river, and carried the war into the ene- 



ABIMELECH MADE KING. 159 

my's territory, and two and twenty thousand men, amongst 
whom were four princes of Midian, were destroyed in the 
combat. 

The grateful Israelites, now restored to independence, 
and transported with the heroism of Gideon, offered to in- 
vest him with royalty and to entail it on his family. But 
their pious deliverer declined the honour — " I will not rule 
over you," said he, " nor shall my sons rule over you : 
Jehovah is your king." 

While Gideon lived and ruled over the Israelites in the 
subordinate capacity of Judge, forty years after his extir- 
pation of the Midianites, the land was in peace, and the 
people w^ere obedient to the laws. But it would seem that 
they were impatient of the restraint, for it was no sooner 
removed by his death, than they relapsed once more into 
idolatry. 

Charles. I would not interrupt you, mother, until you 
had finished the life of Gideon, but I expected you would 
have told us what were the signs by which he was satisfied 
of his divine appointment. 

Mother. I must not regale you, my son, with too many 
of the streams, lest you should be content without repairing 
to the fountain. In the sacred writings you will be con- 
tinually entertained with surprising events. There you 
have instruction in ever-varying form from the sententious 
maxim to the finished argument — from the simple narrative 
to the florid ode. At the period on which we now are 
engaged, Vv^e find the introduction of the fable, since that 
time a favourite mode of teaching in the East. I will pre- 
sently indulge you with this beautiful specimen, the most 
ancient extant of that class of composition. 

Gideon, or Jerubaal as he was surnamed, because he 
destroyed the altar of Baal, had seventy sons, the children 
of many v/ives. After his death, Abimelech, possibly the 
most worthless of them all, remembering the offer of the 
Israelites to distinguish the family of their benefactor, 
repaired to Shechem, a city of refuge in the district of 
Ephraim, and the native city of his mother, and prevailed 
on them to declare him their king. The rival pretensions 
of his numerous brethren were at once removed by putting 
them all to death — excepting only Jotham the youngest, 



160 jotham's fable. 

who escaped the general massacre, and the knowledge of 
its extent, only by a successful flight. 

When the shocking tale was told to Jotham, grieved and 
indignant at the cruel ambition of Abimelech, the son of a 
maid-servant, the weak submission of the Shechemites and 
their base requital of his illustrious father's services, he 
ventured as far as the vicinity of Shechem, and standing 
on Mount Gerizzim he reproved them by the following 
parable: — "Hearken unto me," said he, "ye men of 
Shechem, that God may hearken unto you. The trees 
went forth on a time to anoint a king over them : and they 
said unto the olive tree, Reign thou over us. The olive- 
tree said unto them, Should I leave my fatness wherewith 
by me they honour God and man, and go to be promoted 
over the trees? And the trees said to the fig-tree. Come 
thou and reign over us. But the fig-tree said unto them, 
Should I leave my sweetness and my good fruit, and go to 
be promoted over the trees ? Then the trees said unto the 
vine. Come thou, and reign over us. And the vine said 
unto them, Should I leave my wine which cheereth God 
and man, and go to be promoted over the trees ? Then said 
all the trees unto the bramble. Come thou and reign over 
us. And the bramble said unto the trees. If in truth ye 
anoint me king over you, then come and put your trust in 
my shadow ; and if not, let fire come out of the brambles 
and devour the cedars of Lebanon. 

" If ye have then dealt truly and sincerely with Jerubaal 
and with his house this day, then rejoice ye in Abimelech, 
and let him also rejoice in you ; but if not, let fire come 
out from Abimelech and devour the men of Shechem, and 
the house of Millo, and let fire come out from the men of 
Shechem, and from the house of Millo and devour Abime- 
lech." Now, Catherine, do you give us the application of 
this apologue. 

Catherine, It appears to me to say, that the noble-minded 
man is satisfied with the spontaneous esteem of others, the 
natural reward of his virtue ; while the less deserving are 
often the most solicitous to conceal their insignificance un- 
der the mantle of public honours ; and that the welfare of 
the state is not sincerely intended by those who place the 
mean and the vicious in the stations of trust and dignity. 



DEATH OF ABIMELECH. 161 

Mother. This is the general moral, and Jotham more- 
over applied it directly to the Shechemites. He reproach- 
ed them with their barbarous ingratitude in murdering the 
whole family of a man who, at the great peril of his own 
life, had delivered his country from intolerable oppression, 
and their interested conduct in promoting the son of a 
servant, because she was a native of their city. Their 
base and bloody policy, he added, would be retaliated on 
their own heads. Having pronounced this prophetic ad- 
monition, Jotham fled from the vengeance of his brother, 
and took refuge in Beer. A compact founded in blood could 
not be permanent : in the course of three years, dissension 
and treachery brought on a civil war between Abimelech 
and his subjects, in which their atrocious cruelty to the sons 
of Gideon was most wofully returned on their own heads. 

Their city w^as destroyed by the tyrant, and their citi- 
zens slain : a thousand men and women at one time were 
put to death in a tower to which Abimelech set fire ; and 
whilst he besieged another, his own death by the fall of a 
stone from the walls, and from the desperate hand of a 
woman, put an end to the tragedy ! 

The death of Abimelech restored order, and the com- 
monwealth enjoyed peace during the administration of 
several succeeding judges, nearly fifty years. But their 
authority was insufficient to restrain the people, or they 
became themselves inattentive to the laws ; for the events 
of that period exhibit the most dreadful licentiousness, in- 
somuch that the tribe of Benjamin was at one time almost 
exterminated in a war with the other tribes. 

Catherine, How could such a deplorable event come to 
pass amongst brethren united by so many and such pecu- 
liar ties ? 

Mother. A shocking act of barbarity, a comment in- 
deed on the foresight of Jacob when he said " Benjamin 
shall raven as a wolf," had been committed in Gibeah, a 
city of that tribe, upon two unoffending travellers, a Levite 
and his wife, by which the latter lost her life. The sur- 
viving sufferer, made an affecting appeal to the nation, who 
with one accord declared, that " no such deed had been 
done since the day that the children of Israel came up out 
of Egypt !" and an assembly of the principal people from 
14# 



162 WAR UPON BENJAMIN. 

Dan to Beer-sheba, and from all the land of Gilead, was 
convoked before the Tabernacle of the Covenant, to deter- 
mine what measures should be taken to obliterate their 
disgrace. Willing that the offenders alone should be 
punished, the assembly sent a deputation to require that 
they might be surrendered to the death they had merited. 
But the Benjamites not only refused to deliver up the mur- 
derers, but prepared with alacrity to defend them. A civil 
war of the most savage character ensued — five and twenty 
thousand of the Benjamites fell in battle, their cities were 
burned — their women, and even their cattle were all slain ! 
The city of Jabesh-gilead next fell a sacrifice to the mad- 
dened rage of the warriors, because they had neglected the 
summons to attend the national council. 

Their vengeance thus completely sated, reason and na- 
ture resumed their authority, and the inhuman Israelites 
beheld with horror the sanguinary deeds they had done. 

The devastation of a kindred tribe awakened their com- 
passion, and repentance brought them to humble themselves 
before the altar of that God to whom injustice and^ cruelty 
are abominable. Deprecating His anger, they presented 
peace offerings, and spent the whole day in fasting and 
tears. A deputation was then sent to a few Benjamites, 
about six hundred, who had escaped from the general 
massacre, and concealed themselves in the caves of an im- 
mense rock called Rimmon, in the wilds of Judah. Four 
months they had been in this dreary abode, and were now 
glad to receive a conciliatory invitation to return to their 
homes. But what a home of desolation had their misguided 
brethren prepared for the unhappy exiles ! Their dwellings 
all in ruin, and their smiling fields laid waste — their females 
cut off — and their whole substance destroyed ! The regret 
of their persecutors could not repair those multiplied evils 
— and in one respect they had tied their own hands. In 
their phrensied indignation, at the national assembly, they 
had made a solemn vow, that no man in Israel should give 
his daughter in marriage to a Benjamite ! To save their 
rash oath and yet do something to express their returning 
kindness to the ruined tribe, they sent them four hundred 
young women whom they had spared at the massacre of 
Jabesh-Gilead : still, as many were left without compa- 



STORY OF JEPHTHAH. 163 

nions, another act of injustice was undertaken to remedy 
the first— and to avert from themselves, the curse pronounc- 
ed on him who should give a wife to the proscribed people. 
A religious festival was held annually at Shiloh, at which 
the maidens were accustomed to dance, in imitation of the 
idolatrous rites of the heathens. This was now the season, 
and the unmarried Benjamites were advised to repair thi- 
ther, and, concealing themselves in the vineyards, seize 
upon the young women when an opportunity offered, and 
thus would their fathers remain guiltless ! 

Catherine, Then it appears after all, that the other 
tribes were a thousand times more criminal than the ori- 
ginal otfenders whom they affected to punish ! 

Mother. Thus it is, my dear, with poor human nature. 
We censure, without charity, the faults of others, whilst 
we do the same, or worse, ourselves ! 

Catherine. Did the reigning judge remain an inactive 
spectator of these horrible disorders ? 

Mother. The immorality and impiety of the Israelites 
during the administration of the judges, might lead us to 
conclusions unfavourable to the character of the latter ; 
but the chronology of some parts of their annals is so in- 
distinct, that we may charitably refer their greatest devia- 
tions to the times when the historian says " there was no 
king in Israel, but every man did that which was right in 
his own eyes ;" or in other words, perhaps, in that inter- 
reD;num which might happen between the death of one 
judge and the appointment of another. I do not mean to 
apologize for them, for the Israelites were never without an 
infallible monitor, had they chosen to ask counsel— but to 
reheve this distinguished order from the censure implied in 
your very obvious question. 

About the same period in which the transactions I have 
been relating occurred, we find a man sacrificing his own 
daughter, or^'otherwise disposing of her, to perform a rash 
vow"^ in direct opposition to the law and custom of his country. 

Fanny. To whom, mother, do you allude ? 

Mother. To Jephthah, whose disposition of his daughter 
has occasioned some discussion, not altogether satisfactory 
at last. The Israelites, ever ready to burst from the shac- 
kles of their own divine institutions, had renewed their for- 



164 STORY OF JEPHTHAH. 

bidden intercourse with the natives, who, on their part, 
were ever ready to ensnare them. They married into their 
families, adopted their manners, and acknowledged their 
gods. Incense arose from their verdant hills, and their 
vines and palms were interwoven into bowers for Baalim 
and Ashtaroth, the patrons of Zidon and Syria ! Insolence 
and domination were the fruits of familiarity with an un- 
principled people, and eighteen years the deluded Israelites 
were repaid by the depredations of the Philistines on the 
one hand, and the Ammonites on the other. At length, 
awakened from their delirium, they acknowledged the jus- 
tice that had afflicted them, and implored the pity of their 
Heavenly Father : and to manifest their sincerity they cut 
down the groves and demolished the altars they had impi- 
ously built. Resolving to drive out the invaders, they form- 
ed a camp in Mizpah and chose Jephthah for their chief. 

The gallant Jephthah was a Gileadite who had been 
driven by his brethren from his father's house because " he 
was the son of a strange woman" — a gentile perhaps, and 
therefore obnoxious to the hatred of a Hebrew family. An 
enterprising spirit, which made him famous in his retire- 
ment beyond Mount Hermon on the border of Syria, and 
had given uneasiness to his fellow-citizens, was probably 
the true cause of his banishment, while the other served as 
a fair pretext. Fitted, by a daring soul, to conduct the 
projected war, he was invited by his native town to take 
the comimand of the troops, with a promise to continue 
him as chief, if he should subdue their enemies. Remem- 
bering their former injustice, he reproached the envoys 
with coming to him in their distress, and refused to assist 
them until he had obtained a confirmation of their offer. 

Before Jephthah took any hostile step, he sent to the 
king of Ammon to inquire why he appeared in Gilead with 
an army? "Because Gilead is mine," returned the king 
— " from the river Arnon unto Jabbok and Jordan. Those 
lands were wrested from me by the Israelites, w^hen they 
came up out of Egypt ; restore, therefore, peaceably, my 
right." A second message from the chief reminded him 
that his ancestors had lost their lands by their active oppo- 
sition to the passage of the Israelites through it into Ca- 
naan ; that no claim had disturbed the possession these last 



jephthah's vow. 165 

had acquired, for three hundred years, and that they would 
defend what the Lord their God had given them. But the 
Ammonites persisted in their claim, and war was declared. 

The Israelitish general having now the rights of his na- 
tion to defend, as well as personal honour to acquire, 
makes a formal vow on the eve of the expected battle, that 
if the enemy should be given into his hand, he would offer 
a burnt offering, or he would consecrate to the Lord what- 
soever came forth first from his house to meet him when 
he returned in peace. 

The war was successful, and Jephthah returned in tri- 
umph to his dwelling. But short-lived are the triumphs of 
mortals ! The door of his house is opened, and a beloved 
daughter comes forth with instruments of music to welcome 
his return ! His daughter — the only child of his affection, 
the innocent victim of his unlawful oath — Jephthah could 
not conceal his distress. He told her his engagement, add- 
ing, " I have opened my mouth to the Lord, and I cannot 
go back !" Full of pity for her father, and pious gratitude 
for the dalivsrarxCe of her country, the amiable maiden sub- 
mitted ; requiring only permission to retire with her female 
companions for a time, to lament her hard destiny ! 

Charles. Dear mother ! do not tell us that Jephthah 
sacrificed his only child ! 

Mother, Alas, my son ! — there is the difficulty which I 
am not able to solve to my own perfect satisfaction. The 
act was so unnatural, human sacrifices were so strictly for- 
bidden, that some commentators have embraced a con- 
struction of the words — " he did according to his vow," 
less revolting than your apprehension. We are told in the 
conclusion of the story, that it became a custom for the 
daughters of Israel to go four days in the year, to lament, 
or to talk loifh the daughter of Jephthah ; from which they 
suppose she retired to a solitude in the mountains, and was 
condemned to a single life. 

Catherine, To relinquish altogether the society of his 
daughter — that daughter, too, his only child, might indeed 
fill the heart of Jephthah with sorrow : but a burnt-offering 
implies the death of the victim. 

Mother, The advocates for the more favourable construc- 
tion of Jephthah's vow, make it convertible to the case as 



166 STORY OF SAMSON. 

it might happen, by rendering the words, and offer it, into 
a conditional promise — or offer it, as might be suitable, 
when the thing devoted should be seen. Unclean animals, 
no more than human creatures, might be offered in sacri- 
fice — but they might be vowed and afterwards redeemed. 
It is reasonable to suppose that Jephthah having this alter- 
native, would not hesitate to save his only daughter. 

Fanny. Had he a right to obhge her to live a single life ? 

Mother. Perhaps not ; yet the law of Moses invested 
parents with a very extensive authority over their children. 
Had she resisted the execution of his inconsiderate vow, he 
would nevertheless have been guiltless. 

Amongst the Judges of Israel we must not omit the cele- 
brated Samson, whose supernatural strength enabled him 
to perform such miraculous achievements. 

Charles. Do you call Samson a Judge ? I had supposed 
him a sort of lawless adventurer, who took advantage of 
extraordinary strength to commit depredations on his 
neighbours. 

Mother. Your error has arisen from reading the story 
of " the strongest man," unconnected with the history of 
his nation. Great events fill the mind with delight, and 
sink deep into the memory, whilst the moral end is unat- 
tended to, or forgotten. 

Samson was one of those men who v/as endowed from 
his birth with extraordinary qualities for the public service. 
His parents were informed of his honourable destiny be- 
fore he was born, by a special message from Heaven, and 
commanded to " let no razor come upon his head, for he 
should be a Nazarite to God." 

Fanny. What is a Nazarite ? 

Mother. The denomination is from a word which signi- 
fies, to separate. In the sixth chapter of Numbers you 
will see the law of Moses for the government of a Naza- 
rite, or a person who had consecrated himself to the per- 
formance of a religious vow. Amongst other rituals to 
be observed, by his class, he was not to cut his hair until 
the days of his vow were fulfilled. Samson was devoted 
by God himself all the days of his life, therefore his hair 
was never to be shorn. 

The Israelites were at this time in subjection to the 



I 



I 



STORY OP SAMSON. 167 

Philistines,* descendants of Ham, the son of Noah, who 
had emigrated from Egypt, and now possessed a strip of 
country along the Mediterranean, divided into five prin- 
cipalities, called Gaza, Askelon, Ashdod, Gath, and Ekron. 
The tribe of Dan, to which Manoah the father of Samson 
belonged, lay adjacent to Philistia. Possessing as yet but 
a part of the inheritance which had been allotted to them, 
and too much confined for their population in that which 
they occupied, they had lately sent an expedition against a 
place called Laish, routed the inhabitants, repaired the 
city, and gave it the name of Dan. Their camp yet re- 
mained, and thither Samson, as he grew up, was accustom- 
ed to resort and display his uncommon strength in feats 
of activity. About his twentieth year, in one of his ram- 
bles, he fell in love with a beautiful woman of Timnath, 
a city of Gath, and entreated his parents to obtain her for 
him in marriage. They objected^ that she was the daugh- 
ter of an enemy, and advised him rather to seek a wife 
amongst his own people ; but unable to divert his unhal- 
lowed passion they consented to accompany him to make 
the treaty. On the way to Timnath, he attacked a young 
lion and slew him as easily as he would have killed a kid ! 
His father and mother being at some distance on the jour- 
ney did not witness this exploit, nor did he relate it to any 
one. Some time after when he went to receive his bride, 
he found a swarm of bees in the carcase of the lion, and 
ate of the honey they had made. From this incident he 
contrived a riddle for the entertainment of the wedding 
guests, and to thirty young men amongst them especially, 
he offered each a change of garments if they should ex- 
pound it, and if they failed, thirty changes should be given 
to him. " Out of the eater," said he, " came forth meat, 
and out of the strong came forth sweetness." The seven 
daysf of festivity were spent in unavailing endeavours to 
discover Samson's riddle, but the secret which their wit 

* Palestine^ one of the appellations of the land of Canaan, was de- 
rived from this people, and appears to have been as ancient as the 
days of Moses, (See Exodus, 15. 14.) but not much used until more 
modern times. 

t See Leah*s week, ante Book I. 



168 STORY OP SAMSON. 

could not penetrate, was betrayed by the bride, whom the 
young men had entangled by the specious reproach of 
having invited them to a feast in order to defraud them of 
their goods, and at last terrified, with the threat of burn- 
ing her, with all her father's house, unless she prevailed 
with her husband to explain his riddle to her. She too had 
her irresistible plea — " thou dost not love me," said she 
weeping, when weaker arguments had assailed him with- 
out effect. This was not to be resisted ; his contest with 
the lion was confided to his wife, and her countrymen were 
soon enabled to meet him exultingly with the solution — 
" what is sweeter than honey, and what is stronger than a 
lion?" 

The base manner in which the young Philistines had 
obtained the forfeit, might have exonerated the abused hus- 
band from his obligation, but the opportunity of giving 
them an earnest of his powers, was not to be neglected — 
he therefore went down to Askelon, and procured the thirty 
garments, by slaying thirty Philistines. Thus the illegal 
marriage of Samson, so inauspicious in the eyes of his 
family, prepared the way for the emancipation of Israel. 
Disgusted, however, by the perfidy of his wife, he left her, 
and returned for a time to his father's house. Absence, in 
a few months, mollified his resentment, and returning love 
brought him back with a conciliating present in his hand, 
to his fair wife, but resentment was rekindled, and increas- 
ed into rage when he found her in the possession of his 
friend ! In vain her father excused himself, on the sup- 
position of her having been entirely abandoned by Sam- 
son, and offered him a younger daughter, still more beauti- 
ful than she. Deaf to all overtures of accommodation, 
the injured husband fiew to avenge himself on the Philis- 
tines, whose artifices had destroyed his domestic peace. 
Three hundred foxes, mischievous animals abounding in 
Palestine, were soon collected by Samson, which, after 
tyeing them in pairs, and attaching a fire-brand to each 
pair, he let loose in their fields and vineyards, and laid the 
whole in ruin ! 

There was no difficulty in laying the mischief at the 
door of the mighty Samson : he alone could have achieved 
it ! and the unhappy Timnite, and his daughter, whose fix- 



STORY OF SAMSON. 169 

tal charms had brought the destroyer amongst them, be- 
came the victims of their fury.^ — They set fire to his house, 
and suffered them both to perish in the flames ! Exaspe* 
rated anew by the total loss of his wife, and the barbarous 
manner in which it had been effected, Samson turned upon 
them, and slew a great number of men. 

Either satisfied with the vengeance he had taken, or not 
fully assured of his ability to defend himself against a 
multitude, the champion of Israel now retired to a district 
of Judah, and took up his abode on the summit of a great 
rock. His departure, however, did not allay the appre- 
hensions of the Philistines ; they had sadly experienced his 
power, and knew not how soon or in what quarter it might 
again assail them. His destruction, therefore, was a com- 
mon cause, and to this end, a body of men marched into 
Judah, and demanded the devoted hero. 

Charles, But I hope his countrymen refused to deliver 
him into their hands? 

Mother, The Israelites were at this time in that spirit- 
less condition into which they always sank when for their 
sins Jehovah withdrew his sustaining arm. Smarting un- 
der the domination of strangers, and Judah particularly 
exposed by their local situation to incursions from their 
tyrants, whom they now saw encamped in the very heart 
of their territory, they ventured not to refuse, but despatch- 
ed three thousand men to bring Samson from his fortress. 
Yet not knowing that he was inspired for the sake of his 
oppressed country, they expostulated with him on the folly 
of using an accidental superiority to the ultimate injury of 
his own people, and told him plainly, that they must con- 
sult their own safety by surrendering him. Samson knew 
what he might expect from the rage of the Philistines ; but 
trusting that he should be assisted as heretofore, he desired 
only that he might not be provoked by any personal vio- 
lence from his brethren, to injure them ; and submitted to 
be bound and conducted to Lehi, the station of his pursuers. 
Acclamations of unbounded triumph announced his ap- 
proach to the camp : but when they came forward to lay 
hold on him, he suddenly bursted the strong cords which 
confined his hands, and seizing the jaw-bone of an ass — 
perhaps the only weapon within his reach — the death of a 
15 



170 STORY OF SAMSON. 

thousand men attested that God had not forgotten hia 
chastened people ! And that Samson, fainting and ready 
to die with thirst after this prodigious exertion of his 
strength, might know to whom his deliverance was to be 
ascribed, water miraculously bursting from a rock, in the 
midst of the deserted camp, restored him to his wonted 
strength ! 

Gaza, in the south of Philistia, was the scene of his next 
exploit. Attracted again by female beauty, Samson was 
passing the night in Gaza, but whilst the citizens were ex- 
ulting that they now had the great scourge of their country 
imprisoned within their walls, he arose at midnight and 
departed, with the ponderous gates of the city upon his 
shoulders ! 

The Philistines now perceived that every attempt to sub- 
due the invincible Samson by physical means availed them 
nothing. Their only hope remained in discovering the 
manner in which he might be successfully assailed, a secret 
impenetrable to them, but known as they believed to him- 
self. 

Another attachment to a fascinating woman afforded the 
fatal opportunity. Samson, though gifted by the supreme 
Governor of Israel with extraordinary abilities for the re- 
lief of his country, was not authorised to expect His co- 
operation, whilst he despised the maxims of common pru- 
dence. Experience should ever teach us to avoid the evils 
which have crossed our careless way. He had already 
suifered by the infidelity of a woman attached to him by no 
religious, or even national affections — yet he becomes the 
slave of another of similar character ! The Philistines, 
ever watchful to circumvent him, understanding that he 
oflen visited Delilah in the valley of Sorek, sent some of 
their chief noblemen to offer her eleven hundred pieces of 
silver, if she would induce him to tell wherein his prodi- 
gious strength lay concealed. Several times he amused 
her with deceptive tales, which as often, on the trial, dis- 
appointed their attempts to take him. At length, wearied 
out by her blandishments and importunity, he confessed 
that he was a Nazarite from his birth, and would become 
weak as another man if the hair of his head should be cut 
off! 



STORY OF SAMSON. 171 

Tempted by the alluring silver in her view, she sum- 
moned once more the malicious lords, assuring them, that 
Samson would not again escape, and most anxious to 
possess their hated foe, another effort was readily made. 
They came down to the valley with the price of her 
treachery in their hands, and the glory of Samson was 
shorn whilst he slumbered on the lap of Delilah ! The 
fruitless struggles of Samson to extricate himself from his 
captors, convinced them that now indeed his secret was 
discovered, and his more than giant strength had departed 
— yet not satisfied, they cruelly put out his eyes, confined 
his limbs with chains of brass, and put him to labour in a 
prison ! 

Sad and sorrowful were now the days of the humbled 
hero ! In the solitude of a prison he might reflect on the 
advantages he had lost, and repent of the folly which had 
thrown them away. His prayers and penitence prevailed 
to their restoration, his hair again grew, his strength re- 
turned, and hope began to revive ! The loss of his sight 
might well- preclude every prospect of doing any thing for 
his oppressed country : but the talent which was entrusted 
to him for her sake, was again directed to her relief 

At the celebration of a great festival to the Philistine 
idols, the now contemned Israelite was brought out and 
presented to the multitude as an object peculiarly obnoxi- 
ous to their insults, whilst they offered sacrifices to the gods 
who had put him into their hands. Men and women were 
assembled on the joyous occasion, and thousands in the 
house, and on the roof of Dagon's temple, beheld, while 
poor Samson was goaded to make sport for his unfeeling 
gaolers. Affecting to submit to his helpless lot, he only 
asked that his hands might be directed to the pillars, that 
he might rest a while his shackled limbs. — " Now," cried 
he, " remember me, and strengthen me, O Lord God ! but 
this once, that I may be avenged of the Philistines for my 
two eyes. Let me die with the Philistines !" The aspira- 
tion was heard, the columns moved beneath his mighty 
grasp, the roof tumbled in, and Samson and his adversaries 
fell together beneath the tremendous crash ! 

Catherine. Did the law of Moses allow of suicide ? 

Mother. No legislator can make a law which militates 



172 STORY OF RUTH. 

against the law of nature. No man can give away what 
is not his property. Life is a tenure, to be held during 
the pleasure of the Giver, and to be surrendered at His 
summons. Samson must not be considered as throwing 
away his own life: he was born and qualified for the 
public service, and in their behalf exposed himself If this 
last act of his life had not been sanctioned by divine 
authority, his prayer would not have been answered. The 
Power which had performed such wonders by his hand, 
could in the same miraculous manner have saved his life 
amidst the ruins of Dagon's temple, if his services had been 
longer required. 

The history of the Judges affords a striking verification 
of the predictions of Moses and of Joshua respecting the 
beneficial effects which would flow to the people of their 
charge, from an adherence to the true religion, and the 
calamities which would inevitably follow their apostacy. 
When they obeyed the injunctions of the law, they were 
happy ; but when they mingled the polytheism of the hea- 
thens, with their own divine institutions, they were torn 
by civil discord, and subjugated by foreign violence. 



RUTH. 



Mother, During the administration of the judges, a 
period of more than three centuries, we have seen the 
Israelites become exceedingly degenerate, and suffering 
severely for their sins. Insulted, subjugated, at war with 
their neighbours, and sometimes even among themselves ; 
agriculture would be neglected, and famine necessarily 
ensue. This cruel addition to their miseries is not ex- 
pressly mentioned in the records which we have been 
reviewing, but it is indicated by the distress of that peo- 
ple in the days of Gideon, when the ravages of the Mi- 
dianites were so wide and incessant, that no sustenance 
remained for either man or beast, and the wretched inha- 
bitants were obliged to secrete the scanty gleaning of their 
fields in the caves of the mountains. To the time of Gi- 



STORY OF RUTH. 173 

deon then, we may very reasonably refer the famine 
which occasioned the introduction of the illustrious Ruth 
into the commonwealth of Israel, and the beautiful episode 
of that part of her life. 

Catherine, The rural scenes and simple manners de- 
scribed in the book of Ruth, are delightful, and she her- 
self is sweetly interesting — yet I do not know why you 
should call her illustrious. 

Mother, Her own amiable character entitles her to 
praise ; but her remarkable fortune has made her illus- 
trious in history. An alien, accidentally incorporated into 
the nation of Israel, she became the grandmother of the 
celebrated king David — and remotely, though in a direct 
line, the ancestor of the Benefactor of mankind, the divine 
Messiah. 

I will give you a brief outline of her story. 

A famine, " in the days when the judges ruled," had 
driven a man named Elimelech, with his family — a wife, 
and two sons — from his residence in Bethlehem-Judah, 
to seek a temporary relief in the country of Moab. Here, 
Elimelech soon after died, and his sons, Mahlon and Chi- 
lion, connected themselves with the Moabites by marrying 
Orpah and Ruth. In a few years this tie was severed by 
the death of both the young men, and poor Naomi, now 
widowed and childless, desired only to return to her native 
country ! Ten years had elapsed since she came from 
Canaan, and peace and plenty had again blessed the land. 
She therefore left the scenes of her sorrow, and, accompa- 
nied by Orpah and Ruth, began her journey back to 
Bethlehem. When they had gone a reasonable distance, 
Naomi turned to her daughters-in-law, and bade them 
farewell, desiring that they would now return to their 
friends. United to her by a sentiment of tenderness for 
the companions they had lost, and veneration for her own 
virtues, they both declared their resolution not to be sepa- 
rated from her ! To abandon their country and kindred 
for her, seemed, to the generous Naomi, too great a sacri- 
fice, but the affectionate attachment of her daughters 
penetrated her heart. Weeping and embracing them, she 
acknowledged all the kindness she had received at their 
hands, and lamented, for their sake, that the hand of the 
15* 



174 STORY OF RCTH. 

Lord had afflicted her ,' " but go, return," she said, " each 
to her mother's house, and the Lord deal kindly with you, 
as ye have dealt with the dead and with me !" 

Orpah yielded to the persuasions of her mother, and 
returned into Moab, but the resolution of Ruth was unal- 
terable. " Intreat me not to leave thee," said she, '* for 
whither thou goest, I will go, and where thou lodgest, I 
will lodge ; thy people shall be my people, and thy God 
my God. Where thou diest, I will die, and there will I 
be buried ; the Lord do so to me, and more also, if aught 
but death part thee and me." 

A determination so solemn was not to be shaken by the 
faint remonstrances of Naomi. Her desolate condition 
demanded the consolations of friendship, nor could she 
refuse an offered proselyte to the covenant of Israel. 
Together, therefore, they proceeded towards Judea. 

It was now the bountiful season when the hills and the 
valleys of Canaan were teeming with plenty ; clustering 
vines and waving grain, just ready for the sickle, presented 
to the returning exile, a smiling landscape, the reverse of 
the impoverished fields which she had left, and overwhelm- 
ed her soul with a sense of the reverse in her own circum- 
stances. " Call me not Naomi," cried she, when her former 
friends, crowding around, accosted her in the terms of 
gratulation. " Is this Naomi who is returned to us ?" — 
" Call me not Naomi,* but call me Mara,f for the Almighty 
hath dealt very bitterly with me ; I went out full, and the 
Lord hath brought me home again empty !" 

The widow of Elimelech was not only bereaved of her 
husband and her sons, but a long residence in a foreign 
land had dissipated her property ; so that she who was 
once able to open her hand liberally, was now obliged to 
depend on others for support ! Her blooming daughter, 
the sole staff of her declining years, cheerfully embraced 
the opportunity, which the bounteous season of harvest 
and the common customs of the country afforded to the 
indigent, of gleaning after the reapers. Not knowing 
whither she went, she was providentially led into the fields 
of Boaz, a son of that Rahab who concealed the spies 

* Naomi si^ifies agreeable. t Maxa signifies hitter. 



STORY OF RUTH. 1V6 

whom Joshua sent into Jericho ; and a distinguished mem- 
ber of the house of *Elimelech. Among the damsels of 
Bethlehem, the engaging appearance of the young Moabi- 
tess attracted the notice of Boaz, and induced him to ask 
the overseer of his fields whence she came. 

Finding her to be a proselyte to his religion and his 
country, and being already acquainted with her character, 
he approached her with the respect which her virtues in- 
spired, and, welcoming her to his fields, requested, that 
she would remain with his people, and partake also of his 
table during the whole harvest. Then going privately to 
the labourers, he commanded them to treat the fair stranger 
-with delicacy, to leave large handfuls where she went, and 
even to let her glean among the sheaves. In the evening 
Ruth returned laden with grain, and related her success to 
her delighted mother, who, anticipating the probable re- 
sult, encouraged her to return every day and avail herself 
of the charity of Boaz. 

Thus was the dejected Naomi sustained, whilst a brighter 
day was beginning to dawn upon the generous Ruth. The 
two wddows were yet in possession of some lands belong- 
ing to their late husbands, which their decayed circum- 
stances obliged them to sell. By the law of Moses, the 
nearest kinsman of the deceased had the first right to pur- 
chase, and moreover the privilege of marrying the widow 
of his relation if no children survived ; the first born of 
the second marriage succeeded, in such a case, to the 
rights of the former husband, so that '' no name, or family 
should be lost in Israel." 

The wealthy Boaz had seen and admired the widow of 
Mahlon, but there was in Bethlehem a man whose relation- 
ship was nearer than his own. As soon, therefore, as the 
conclusion of harvest allowed him leisure to attend to 
other affairs, he summoned this man to appear at the gate 
of the city, where causes w^ere usually heard, and there, 
in the presence of the elders, he required him to purchase 
the lands of Elimelech, and marry his daughter-in-law; 
but this person, whose name is not mentioned, refused to 
comply with the law. 

Boaz then called the elders to witness, that he there pur- 
chased " all that was Elimelech's and Mahlon's and Chi- 



176 STORY OF RUTH. 

lion's, of the hand of Naomi ; and Ruth the Moabitess he 
took to be his wife." The usual testimonials of a contract 
were given to Boaz, and he was dismissed with the bless- 
ings of the elders on himself, and the fair stranger whom 
he had thus honourably espoused. The marriage was 
celebrated, and the last years of Naomi w^ere happy in a 
flourishing family. 

Fanny, Who were they, who were called the Elders of 
the city ? 

Mother, They are not described in the Old Testament, 
that I recollect ; but are frequently mentioned. They ap- 
pear to have been citizens, selected by the inhabitants from 
among the most aged and respectable, and invested with 
authority to determine causes. 

Catherine, The gate of the city, was a strange place 
in which to hear a cause. Why did the people meet there ? 

Mother, Perhaps, because it w^as the most frequented 
place. 

In these early days, there were no such buildings for 
public purposes as modern times have contrived : but the 
love of social intercourse implanted in the hearts of all 
men, w^ould in all times collect them into some convenient 
spot to talk together ; and this spot might afterwards be 
found the most commodious one for public business. In 
this way, probably, the gate became the court-house of the 
city. 

Fanny. The patriarchal manners and moral beauty of 
this story are really refreshing after your picture of the 
general depravity of the times. It bears so strong a resem- 
blance to the Palemon and Lavinia of our favourite Thom- 
son, that one would suppose it to have been the model of 
that exquisite story. 

Mother, There is no doubt of the fact ; with the alter- 
ation of some of its incidents, and the embellishments of 
his fine fancy, it is the same. 

The Bible is the inexhaustible source from which rhetoric 
and poetry have delighted mankind in every age. In a 
multitude of instances, it surpasses all attempts at imita- 
tion. Let us take this opportunity of making a compari- 
son ; and we can nowhere do it with more advantage to 
the poet, for " Palemon and Lavinia" is the admiration of 



STORY OF RUTH. 177 

the world. Yet with all the winning graces of Thomson's 
genius, it will be found inferior in variety, in pathos, and 
in moral interest, to the history of Ruth the Moabitess. 

In the poem of the Scottish Bard, an aged widow and 
her daughter are represented as reduced from affluence to 
poverty, and as having retired from the mortifying gaze of 
the world, to an obscure retreat. Urged by necessity, the 
daughter goes out to glean in the field of a neighbour, who 
is " rich, generous, and young." Her beauty and her mo- 
desty attract his notice, and yet more his sympathy, by a 
fancied resemblance to his friend and benefactor. He con- 
verses with her, and finds that she is indeed the daughter 
of that long-lost friend, the sole author of his prosperity. — 
He marries her, and competency and joy again brighten 
the settinor day of the widowed mother. 

In the history of Israel, a family are driven from their 
native country by a famine : the two sons, the only chil- 
dren of their parents, marry ; the father dies ; and after- 
wards, both the sons, the hope and stay of their widowed 
mother, are also taken away ! Bereft of all, the weeping 
exile returns to her native land. Her daughters-in-law 
affectionately accompany her ; one is hardly persuaded to 
go back, but the other, undaunted by poverty, and the trou- 
bles which she may encounter among an unknown people, 
clings to her with the fondest attachment, and, abjuring 
the superstitions in which she had been educated, declares 
she will live and die with her in the religion and the coun- 
try of her lost husband ! Now all these affecting incidents, 
calculated in themselves, without the ornament of lan- 
guage, to excite the deepest sympathy, are wanting in the 
fiction of Thomson. Here the poet takes up the history, 
and he gives us indeed a most enchanting transcript of the 
remaining scenes ; still the original is more strongly im- 
pressive, because we know the picture to be genuine. Be- 
sides, the frank and simple contract of Boaz, and the gra- 
tulations of her neighbours to Naomi, when her family 
was revived in the first-born of Boaz and Ruth, are beau- 
ties to which the poem has no parallel circumstances. 

Obed, this son, who, according to their rule, was called 
the son of Naomi ^ is the link which connects the story of 
Ruth with the history of the Israelites. 



178 SAMUEL. 

Fanny. How delightful it is to get a new idea ! I have 
often thought of the resemblance between these two stories, 
but I was not aware of the superiority of Ruth to my fa- 
vourite Palemon and Lavinia. Pray, who was the author 
of this book 1 

Mother. We are nowhere informed ; but both this book 
and that which is denominated Judges, are usually as- 
cribed to the prophet Samuel, on whose more generally 
acknowledged writings we are now about to enter. 



SAMUEL. 



Mother, The story of Ruth, the subject of our last 
conversation, may be considered as an episode in the his- 
tory of the Judges ; for although we have dismissed the 
book bearing that title, we find the Israelites still subject 
to their government, in the commencement of Samuel^ the 
book which immediately follows. 

The brief annals of the Judges afford but an indistinct 
idea of the nature of their administration. Indeed it would 
seem to have had no uniform character. 

With respect to their military chiefs, it is distinctly re- 
lated that they were animated by the " spirit of the Lord," 
to deliver their country on various occasions ; but how, or 
in what manner they exercised the civil authority in times 
of peace, we do not learn. Samson, the most conspicuous 
of them all, we are told, "judged Israel twenty years," 
yet in all that time, he never appeared in a judicial pro- 
ceeding. Nor is he seen, like others, at the head of their 
armies ; nor did he, like Gideon, and Deborah, and Ehud; 
obtain liberty and peace for his country by completely sub- 
duing its oppressors. 

Samson was rather a scourge to the Philistines, and pre- 
pared the way for the emancipation of the Israelites, by 
spreading terror and dismay wheresoever he went. By the 
exercise of his supernatural strength, he taught the hea- 
then to fear the God of Israel, when he was pleased to 
display his omnipotent arm in behalf of his people. 



I 



CONSECRATION OF SAMUEL. 179 

After the death of Samson, we find the government vest- 
ed successively in two persons of very different character 
— Eli, the high priest, and Samuel the prophet and histo- 
rian : but whether by command of the divine oracle — or 
by the election of the people, we are left to conjecture. 

During the administration of Eli, a Levite named Elka- 
nah (a descendant of the rebel Korah, who perished in the 
wilderness) came up to Shiloh with his wife Hannah, to 
attend an annual sacrifice, and to devote their infant son 
Samuel, to the service of their God. Elkanah was the 
husband of two wives, Penninah and Hannah. Penninah 
was the happy mother of sons and daughters, — but Han- 
nah had no child. The latter, however, being the more 
amiable, was the favourite ; yet the partial fondness of her 
husband did not console Hannah, while her proud rival 
continually taunted her with scornful exultation on her own 
maternal riches. This cruel bane to her domestic peace 
augmented in the suffering Hannah the desire that prevail- 
ed among the Hebrew v/omen for the blessing of children 
— each one indulging the proud hope that she might her- 
self become the mother of the promised Benefactor, so 
universally expected. The ardent prayer of Hannah was, 
therefore, for a son, whom she vowed she would devote to 
the Lord. Her prayer at length was heard, and she called 
her son Samuel — a name implying — one devoted to God, 
" For this child I prayed," said Hannah, Vv'-hen she present- 
ed him to Eli, '• piomising to lend him to Jehovah as long 
as he lived." '- He hath answered my petition, and 1 am 
come to perform my vow." The devout efilision of the 
pious mother's grateful soul on this interesting occasion, 
recorded in the second chapter of this book, is classed 
among the finest specimens of Hebrew poetry. Hannah 
possibh/ imagined that her ardent supplication had obtained 
the promised Messiah, who, it has been observed, is here 
first spoken of as the anointed of the Lord — -but it is cer- 
tain that her virtue was revrarded by a son, who became 
an eminent blessing to the nation. 

The precious offering was gladly received by the good 
priests, who immediately arrayed him in the dress of the 
Levitical order, and the joyful parents returned home with 
the blessing of Eli on their exemplary piety. 



180 RESIGNATION OF ELI. 

Catherine, Did the consecration of Samuel oblige his 
parents to leave him at Shiloh, or did he return home un- 
til his age and education might qualify him for the service 
of the sanctuary ? 

Mother, The sanctuary was his home from that hour, 
and Eli his preceptor. But his parents, who strictly ob- 
served the institutions of Moses, had an opportunity of see- 
ing him, and bringing Httle presents to him when they 
came to the annual festivals. They had, moreover, the 
pleasure of seeing him improving in knowledge and virtue, 
from year to year- — the dearest temporal blessing which 
heaven bestows on a parent, if, indeed, it be not a blessing 
more exalted than any thing of a temporal nature. 

Not such were the consolations of the aged priest. His 
sons, Phinehas and Hophni, priests of course, dishonoured 
their holy office, by their iniquitous and even sacrilegious 
proceedings. With the patience and the piety of a saint, 
he reproved them ; but with the fond indulgence of a 
father, he neglected to use the authority of a magistrate 
to restrain or to punish them. The total destruction of 
his house, and the death of his two impious sons, in one 
day, was the awful punishment denounced by a messenger 
who was sent to testify the divine displeasure on his guilty 
negligence. Soon after, the same revelation was made to 
the young prophet, as he lay at night in an apartment ad- 
jacent to that of his guardian. Tidings so heart-rending, 
involving both himself and his children, could not be com- 
municated voluntarily to Eli. But, as Eli knew that 
Samuel had been disturbed in the night by a vision, he be- 
sought him next morning, to hide nothing from him ; and 
his charge was, therefore, compelled, though reluctantly, 
to declare the whole truth ! The terrrible denunciation 
having been previously delivered to himself, the soul of 
the venerable priest was reduced to the most perfect resig- 
nation, and he quietly answered — " It is the Lord, let him 
do what seemeth him good !" 

Catherine, How could he, who had not fortitude to 
avert the impending evil, now submit, without a murmur, 
to the tremendous result ? But, perhaps, he thought only 
of the temporal death of his profligate sons — since " lifo 
and immortality are brought to light by the Gospel." 



THE ARK TAKEN. 181 

Mother, They were brought, with clearness^ to light 
by the Gospel. The heathen philosophers were, indeed, 
in total ignorance of the immortality of the soul — not 
altogether so the ancient people of God. If, however, 
this eminent saint was acquainted with the punishment 
reserved for deliberate, unrepenting transgressors, I can 
only confess, that it is extremely difficult to form an idea 
of such elevated piety, as resignation, under circumstances 
so unspeakably agonizing. But let us turn from the pain- 
ful subject, and contemplate the rising character of Sam- 
uel. For many years a prophet had not appeared in Israel, 
and now that another was sent, it was hailed as an omen 
of returning prosperity, and Samuel was honoured and 
obeyed. The favourable interposition of Heaven in their 
behalf, was joyfully anticipated, and they were once more 
encouraged to an open resistance of their enemies. War 
was hastily declared against the Philistines, and hostilities 
begun — but, to their great surprise, they lost the first bat- 
tle, and four thousand of their army ! they now began to 
consider why they had been disappointed, and recollected 
that in former days, when their affairs had been regularly 
conducted, the Ark of the Covenant was always carried to 
the field. 

This they supposed would now again ensure success, 
and immediately a messenger was sent to bring the tute- 
lary standard from Shiloh. No hands but the priests' 
might touch the ark of the covenant ; and the sons of Eli 
were therefore brought with it into the field. We may 
imagine the vast importance attributed to the presence of 
the ark, from the words of the historian, who says " the 
earth rang with the sound of their shouts" — and the camp 
of their enemies was filled with dismay when they became 
acquainted with the rejoicings among the Israelites. " Woe 
unto us !" said they, " Who shall deliver us from these 
mighty gods that smote the Egyptians with all the plagues." 
" Be strong, quiet yourselves like men," said they, ex- 
horting their soldiers, — " Let not these Hebrews who have 
been our subjects, become our masters." But apprehen- 
sion and dismay on the one hand, and joy and confidence 
on the other, were reversed, when the armies of Israel 
were again put to flight, leaving Phinehas and Hophni, 
16 



182 DEATH OP ELI* 

with thirty thousand slain on the field of battle, and the 
sacred ark* in the hands of their enemies. A Benjamite, 
who escaped, arrived first at the city of Shiloh. His 
clothes rent, and earth upon his head, (in those days, ex- 
pressive emblems of excessive sorrow,) declared the fatal 
tidings. The tumult and cries of the people soon reached 
the ears of poor old Eli, who, blind and decrepit, had 
seated himself at the gate of the city, where he might 
hear the earliest intelligence from the army. His two 
sons he had already resigned, but the capture of the " ark 
of God" was unexpected ; too feeble to endure so many 
disasters at once, he fell from his seat ; his neck was 
broken by the fall, and he died ; being ninety-eight years 
of age, forty -four of which, he had been judge and priest. 
The wife of Phinehas too, fell a victim to the blow — her 
husband slain — the ark of the covenant taken — and now 
her excellent father-in-law dead — she survived only to ex- 
claim " the glory is departed from Israel," and to call a 
son, who was born in that sorrowful hour, by the name 
of Ichabod, which implied, the glory has departed, 

Charles, These infidels would not value the ark — 
what did they do with it ? 

Mother. They not only knew how highly it was es- 
teemed by their adversaries, but had themselves feared, its 
influence : they, therefore, carried it as a proud trophy to 
the temple of their idol in Ashdod, and placed it before his 
image. Day after day the god Dagon was found prostrate 
before the ark : and at length broken in pieces ! The citi- 
zens of Ashdod, too, were visited with disease, until, per- 
suaded that it was inflicted by the God of Israel, for their 
profanation of his dwelling, they sent it away from them 
to the city of Gath. Here, too, the same effects were pro- 
duced, and the ark was in consequence carried thence to 
Ekron, but universal terror preceding the mysterious re- 
pository, the people of Ekron refused to admit it within 
their borders. The princes and priests of the Philistines 
then held a council, and determined to appease the God 
of Israel, by sending home the ark, which had now been 
with them seven months. Fearing, however, to approach 

* Above three hundred years after Joshua had fixed the ark at Shiloh. 



ARK REMOVED TO KIRJATH-JEARIM. 183 

this tremendous scourge, yet unwilling to acknowledge its 
agency in the evils they had suffered, they settled the ques- 
tion by sending it off in a cart without any visible guide. 
If the cattle, which drew the vehicle, were directed by 
instinct straight forward to the land of Israel — then sacri- 
lege had been committed, and a trespass offering was ac- 
cordingly laid beside the sacred shrine ; but if otherwise, 
then their sufferings had been accidental. Five lords of 
the Philistines followed at a distance, and returned the 
same day to Ekron with the report, that the kine had taken 
the direct road to Beth-shemesh, a levitical city, on the 
border of Judah ; and had halted in a field of wheat. 
This was the fact. It was harvest-time, and the field was 
full of reapers. Many crowded from the town to behold 
this wonderful thing, and many indulged their curiosity 
by looking into the ark ; these were immediately smitten 
to death, for their presumption. Rejoicing was now 
changed into lamentation, and the awe-struck spectators, 
desirous only to remove from them a monitor so holy, so 
jealous, sent off to Kirjath-jearim, entreating the inhab- 
itants to receive the ark. To that place, therefore, it was 
removed, and set up in the house of Joshua, whose son 
Eleazar was consecrated to take charge of it ; and there 
it remained the fifty succeeding years with but little inter- 
ruption. 

Meanwhile, Samuel, who had succeeded to the civil ad- 
ministration on the death of Eli, improved all these events 
to awaken Israel to a sense of their heartless superstition. 
The visible emblem of Jehovah, and the exterior observ- 
ance of rites, he told them, would avail them nothing, 
without repentance, and reformation : the altars of Balaam 
and Ashteroth must be cast from them, and the God of 
Israel alone must receive their homage. Animated and 
encouraged by a man whom they venerated, to set about 
the business in earnest, the work of destruction was soon 
completed, and all Israel obeyed his summons to observe 
a day of fasting and prayer, at Mizpah. 

While the nation was assembling from all quarters, the 
Philistines heard of the solemn convocation, and rejoiced 
in the opportunity it afforded of surprising them. The 
experiment was made ; but the Israelites, now in the exer« 



184 ISRAELITES ASK A KING. 

cise of faith and penitence, were fit subjects for mercy, 
and their deliverance was effected by a dreadful storm of 
thunder, which completely discomfited their confident ene- 
mies. Pursued and driven into their own territory, they 
did not venture again to disturb the Israelites all the re- 
maining days of Samuel. 

This interval of peace and freedom, obtained by the 
piety and patriotism of the prophet, was faithfully devoted 
to the improvement of his people. Taking an annual cir- 
cuit round the country, inquiring into their condition, and 
hearing their causes, he instituted among them those semi- 
naries, that were afterwards known by the name of Schools 
of the Prophets — so that he was in letters, as in religion, 
a public benefactor. 

Catherine. We, who are so happy as to live at a time 
when literature, both sacred and profane, is so highly cul- 
tivated, may be able to estimate the value of such a man 
in a less favoured age. 

Mother, There is not a more estimable character in the 
sacred records than that of Samuel. Administering the 
law^s with integrity, and teaching the Israelites their duties, 
he maintained an ascendancy over all classes of the peo- 
ple, and they were contented under his government, until 
the feebleness of old as-e induced him to associate with him 
his two sons, in the performance of his extensive work. 
Joel and Abiah, like the sons of good old Eli, were dege- 
nerate men, and undermnned, by their misconduct, the fair 
edifice their upright father had erected. Instead of imitating 
his probity, they took bribes of the suitors, and the people 
became greatly dissatisfied. 

The elders of Israel, seeing the laws daily perverted, 
and becoming contemptible in the eyes of the nation, con- 
sulted together how the licentiousness and anarchy w^hich 
they apprehended, on the death of their judge, might be 
averted. But the authority which his virtue had obtained, 
restraining them from taking any important step without 
his concurrence, they repaired to him, and, representing 
the disorders occasioned by the irregularities of his sons, 
entreated that he would provide for their future safety, by 
making them a king, whilst yet he lived. 

Confiding in that gracious Providence which had hitherto 



SAUL APPOINTED KING. 185 

sustained the chosen people, Samuel was displeased with 
their request, yet he consented to lay it before the Supreme 
Ruler. He did so, and returned with permission to make 
them a king, but he was commanded to warn them previ- 
oushs ol" the consequences of their impiety. 

Fanny, I confess, mother, I cannot perceive the impiety 
of asking for a king. In America, we choose a republican 
form of government, but we do not charge those who pre- 
fer a monarchy, with impiety. 

Mother, Neither are they impious. The case of the 
Israelites was altogether singular. With a code of laws 
given by Jehovah himself, and governed by Him in a visi- 
ble manner, they had abundant evidence that prosperity 
would continue to be, as it ever had been, the reward of 
obedience. To remain under the institutions of His choice 
was their obvious duty ; but in vain were they admonished 
that their wilful dereliction would be its own punishment ; 
in vain were they reminded, that Jehovah was, in fact, 
their king — that Jehovah, not Samuel, was rejected ! " that 
the king whom they should set over them would oppress 
them to aggrandize himself — that he would raise armies of 
their sons, and involve them in wars — that their free-born 
daughters would be his cooks, and his bakers, and his con- 
fectionaries — -that he would take their fields and their vine- 
yards, even the best of them, and give them to his ser- 
vants — that he would take the tenth of the produce of their 
lands for his officers — that he would take the tenth of their 
sheep — and their goodliest young men to do the meanest 
of his work — and, after all, when the cries of their servi- 
tude ascended to heaven, no answer would be given." The 
reproof, and the warning, and the menace, were alike un- 
availing — " Nay, but we will have a king, like the na- 
tions," was their obstinate determination ; and Samuel was 
accordingly commanded to take Saul, the son of Kish, of 
the tribe of Benjamin, and anoint him privately, and after- 
wards to take him, by lot, at Mizpeh, from the tribes and 
the families of Israel, in the presence of all the people. 
Thus the government of Israel, which had been adminis- 
tered by judges for more than three centuries, was now 
changed into a monarchy. (B. C. 1095.) 

Catherine, Was it no longer then a theocracy ? 
16* 



186 AMMONITES ATTACK JABESH-6ILEA0. 

Mother, It was still a theocracy, for the king had no 
power to make a new law, or to alter those delivered to 
Moses. He was but the vicegerent of the Most High, and 
distinguished above the judges by the appendages of roy- 
alty, which they never assumed, and by the transmission 
of regal authority to his children. 

The person of the new king was remarkably tall, and 
his countenance noble. His princely appearance presaged 
the future glory of the nation, and acclamations of " God 
save the king," resounded through the air when Samuel 
presented him to the people. 

Catherine, So it is then from this early example that 
the invocation on a reigning monarch is handed down to 
the present day? 

Mother. This is the first example upon record, and, 
probably, the first occasion on which it had been used. It 
would be well for us to retain every good lesson derived 
from the Scriptures, with equal tenacity. But, notwith- 
standing the delight of the people on the gratification of 
their inconsiderate desire to be assimilated " to the na- 
tions," there were among them some turbulent spirits who 
beheld with envy the elevation of an equal to the unprece- 
dented honour of a crown. These men refused to do him 
homage in the customary manner of bringing presents, and 
scornfully exclaimed, " how shall this man save us ?" Saul 
prudently took no notice of the affront, but rather strove to 
allay their angry feelings, by modestly retiring, for the pre- 
sent, to his residence at Gibeah. An occasion, however, 
soon offered, to unite all hearts in his favour. Their old 
enemies, the Ammonites, came up and encamped over 
against Jabesh-gilead. The inhabitants, weak and de- 
fenceless, offered to make terms, and thereby encouraged 
their assailants to demand the liberty of putting out the 
right eye of every man in the city ! This unexpected in- 
solence convinced them that a war was not to be avoided. 
They obtained, however, a respite of seven days, and in- 
stantly despatched messengers to all the tribes on the other 
side of Jordan, entreating them to come to their assistance. 

The news had just arrived at Gibeah, and had thrown 
the city into a tumult, as Saul entered from his customary 
occupations in the field. " The Spirit of the Lord" came 



SAUL CONQUERS THE AMMONITES. 187 

suddenly upon him, and he entered promptly and zealously 
on the public duties of his station. 

Fanny, What is implied in these words, " The Spirit 
of the Lord" came upon him? 

Mother, They are used here as they are in the cases 
of Gideon, of Samson, and others, to signify that the cou- ( 
rage and wisdom displayed in their subsequent actions, 
were inspired by the Lord, from whom every excellent 
quaUty must emanate, because He is the source of all. 
Thus Saul, when his people required his protection, was 
animated to the exercise of his authority without diffidence. 
Justly indignant at the disgraceful condition exacted of 
the men of Jabesh, he took a yoke of oxen, hewed them in 
pieces, and sent them throughout all Israel, with this mes- 
sage ; " Whoever refuses to follow Saul and Samuel, so 
shall it be done unto his oxen:" in the mean time he as- 
sured the anxious Gileadites that they should have help. 
Three hundred and thirty thousand men were speedily 
marched to their relief, and the Ammonites driven back 
with a great slaughter. 

The people now, exulting in the prowess of their king, 
called aloud for the men who had refused to acknowledge 
Saul, that they might be put to death ; but Saul forbade 
the bloody expiation on a day when their arms had been so 
signally prosperous. 

Pleased with this instance of meekness and piety, Sa- 
muel proposed to the army to repair to Gilgal, and again 
proclaim their king. No murmurs interrupted their har- 
mony, but, joyfully proceeding to Gilgal, peace-offerings 
were sacrificed, and Saul again solemnly recognized as the 
King of all Israel. 

Fanny, Why did an amiable Prince choose so revolting 
a manner of assembling his subjects, as sending mangled 
flesh amongst them ? 

Mother, You are not to consider the act as an evidence 
of his disposition, but of the customs which prevailed. 
Emblems were used, in the infancy of language, to ex- 
press ideas. When that became more copious, they were 
still retained in the East. 

Although the desire of the Israelites to be governed by 
a king, had been sanctioned by the divine nomination of 



188 SAUL DESTROYS THE AMALEKITES. 

the person, and although that person had already evinced 
the possession of talents suited to his station, yet Samuel 
would not neglect the opportunity offered him by their im- 
moderate exultations at Gilgal, to remind them, that the 
introduction of a royal government was an act of rebellion 
against their rightful Sovereign, and an evidence of the 
same guilty disposition to apostacy which had often in- 
volved their forefathers in trouble. That they might not 
impute his reproof to envy, or any other interested mo- 
tives, he called upon them to witness before God, and their 
king — whether he had not administered the government 
with uniform uprightness. With one accord, they attested 
his integrity ; he then assured them that an immediate 
judgment would convince them that they had displeased 
the Almighty — not him, in asking for a king. Thunder, 
and unseasonable rain upon their fields, now, in the time 
of harvest, reduced the inconsiderate people to a sense of 
their sin, and they earnestly besought their prophet to pray 
for them. " God forbid," he replied, " that I should mi 
against him by ceasing to pray for and instruct you ; nor 
will He abandon you ; if ye serve him in sincerity and 
truth. He will preserve both you and your king." 

The flattering anticipations indulged by the nation from 
the indications of excellence in their royal ruler, weiiie in 
a short time reversed : he continued, indeed, active and 
successful in repelling the invaders of his country on every 
side ; but in the prosecution of his wars he was guilty of 
disobedience to the Divine lav/ — and in his private charac- 
ter he became jealous, arbitrary, and cruel. 

Among the heathens by whom Israel was encompassed, 
the Amalekites, a powerful people, had manifested their 
enmity so early as in the beginning of the passage through 
the wilderness, when the feeble emigrants were without 
confidence either in themselves or in their Divine leader, 
and had continued their hostility to the present time. For 
their opposition in the first instance, judgments had been 
denounced, and now that their cup of iniquity was running 
over with the most abominable idolatry, complete exter- 
mination, both of themselves, and of every living creature 
in their possession, was commanded. In the prosecution 
of this awful decree, the Hebrew monarch was prompt and 



SAUL REJECTED. 189 

successful — so far as he went : for he presumed to execute 
his own will in part. Instead of obeying the express de- 
cree that every living creature should die, he not only re- 
served the best of the captured flocks, but spared the life 
of Agag, the king, of whose ruthless warfare we may form 
some idea from the reproach of Samuel when he after- 
wards inflicted the death the tyrant had well merited — 
" Thy sword hath made women childless." 

This palpaple act of disobedience, aggravated by the 
pretext of religious zeal, that he had reserved the cattle for 
sacrifice, received a reproof not less instructive to us, than 
to him to whom it was addressed — for we are all prone to 
excuse our transgressions, by some plausible apology, 
whilst an honest conscience would detect the deceit, and 
remind us, with Saul, that, " to obey is better than sacri- 
fice, and to hearken, than the fat of rams." 

To this reproof, the prophet added a repetition of the 
sentence which he had before announced ; " Because thou 
hast rejected the word of the Lord, he hath rejected thee 
from being king" — and " hath rent the kingdom of Israel 
from thee this day, and hath given it to a neighbour of 
thine that is better than thou." 

Charles, Was Saul then immediately deprived of the 
crown ? 

Mother, No. The rejection of Saul was the exclusion 
of his house from the succession : the pitying prophet, 
therefore, when he professed himself sensible of his sin, 
yielded to his entreaty " not to dishonour him before the 
elders and the people," and continued near him for a time ; 
but at length he retired to his own house at Ramah, and 
left the fallen kino; to his own counsels. At Ramah he re- 
mained, in melancholy reflection on the defection of Saul 
and the disappointment of his country — until he was aroused 
by a command to grieve no more for Saul, but hasten to 
Bethlehem, where, in the family of Jesse, he would find him 
whom he should anoint in the place of the rejected monarch. 

Taking, therefore, an heifer for an offering, he went to 
Bethlehem, and after he had invited the elders of the town 
to attend at the sacrifice which he was come to celebrate — 
he went to the house of Jesse, and desired that he and his 



190 DAVID ANOINTED. 

sons should sanctify themselves for the approaching so 
lemnity. 

Charles, How were they to sanctify themselves ? 

Mother, The legal purifications of their persons by 
washing, or purifying with water, to signify the purity of 
heart required in every act of worship to the Creator, is 
intended in this and in every similar text. The propriety 
of the principle, and the aptitude of the sign, have been so 
universally felt, that ablutions have been adopted into the 
religious rites of almost all nations ; and with some, ap- 
pear to constitute the very essence of their religion. Ob- 
jects of sense are indeed very imposing, and too often cap- 
tivate our understanding. Even the penetrating eye of 
Samuel beheld with much complacency the noble form of 
Eliab, Jesse's eldest son, when he came into his presence : 
this, surely, he thought, must be he whom the Lord had 
sent him to anoint in the place of Saul — but his secret 
monitor commanded him to " look not on his countenance, 
nor the height of his stature, for the Lord seeth not as man 
seeth ; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the 
Lord looketh on the heart.'^^ In like manner, seven sons of 
Jesse, passing in review before Samuel, were rejected, until 
he inquired if these were all his children ? Being informed 
that there remained yet the youngest, who kept the sheep, 
he refused to sit down to dinner until he should appear. 
David, the young shepherd, and who will be, to the end of 
time, the famous king of Israel, was summoned from the 
field, approved, and anointed in the presence of his family. 

The reigning monarch meanwhile, no longer comforted 
by the presence of Samuel, became a prey to chagrin. A 
mental malady, which is described in terms opposed to 
those I lately explained to you, or as an " evil spirit from 
the Lord," afilicted him. His servants proposed to soothe 
him by music, and recommended David the Bethlehemite 
as a young person skilful in playing on the harp, of a 
beautiful form, and courageous and prudent in his conduct. 
At the king's request, therefore, David, laden with presents 
from his father, was sent, and succeeded in tranquillizing 
his perturbed spirit. Again the Philistines invaded Canaan, 
and pitched their camp on a mountain of Judah, whilst 
Saul, with his army, took his stand on an opposite eleva- 



GOLIATH SLAIN BY DAVID. 191 

tion. While they lay thus, with only a narrow valley be- 
tween them, observing each other, a champion of most ter- 
rific appearance advanced from the camp of the Philistines, 
and defied the king to send out a man to decide the con- 
test with him by single combat. More than seven feet in 
height, and covered from head to foot with brass, armed 
with a weapon of proportionate strength, and attended by 
a page bearing a shield, this giant filled the camp of his 
adversaries with dismay. Forty days, morning and even- 
ing, he had thundered his insulting challenge across the 
valley, when, to the utter astonishment of the king, the 
stripling David proposed to encounter him. He had retired 
from his accidental attendance on Saul, to his father's 
house, and now, coming to the camp, on a visit to three of 
his brothers who were with the army, he heard the impious 
menace of Goliath, and the vain efforts of his countrymen 
to inspirit one another, by detailing the privileges which 
would distinguish the man who should kill this tremendous 
enemy. " The king," said they, " will give him his daugh- 
ter — will enrich him, and exempt his father's house from 
taxation." 

The indignant remarks of David, intimating his readi- 
ness to engage the formidable Goliath, alarmed his bro- 
thers, and they tried to repress his ambition — but David 
was designed to vindicate the aspersed honour of " the liv- 
ing God." His contempt of the boaster, reaching the tent 
of the king, he was sent for, and admonished that he was 
but a youth, whilst the man he despised was not only of 
preternatural strength, but a warrior trained from his 
youth. " Thy servant," replied the son of Jesse, " slew 
both a lion, and a bear, who attacked his flock. He who 
delivered me from the lion and the bear, will deliver me 
out of the hand of this giant — therefore," added he, with 
modest fortitude, " let no man's heart fail because of him 
— thy servant will go and fight with this Philistine." 

Presumptuous as this bold resolution might appear to the 
monarch, he nevertheless arrayed the champion in his own 
armour, and put his own sword into his hand ; but the 
elastic limbs of youth, invigorated by the healthful hills of 
Bethlehem, refused the unnatural restraint. A sling and a 
stone, the implements of his rural pastime, were the wea- 



192 David's triumph. 

pons he chose ; with these, he advanced to the wondrous 
enterprise — and with these, one fatal blow laid the vaunt- 
ing Philistine prostrate on the earth ! Seeing him fall, 
David hastened to the spot, and, seizing his own sword, 
severed his head from his body, and brought it in triumph 
to the king ! 

The complete rout of the invaders followed the death of 
their champion ; — leaving their camp to enrich the Israel- 
ites, they fled, and were pursued with terrible slaughter to 
their cities, Ekron and Gath. 

The conquerors then, with David bearing the head of 
Goliath in his hands, returned in triumph to the capital. 
The march to the city was one continued scene of festivity; 
the people from all their towns saluting them with shouts 
of joy, and the women in bands dancing to the music of 
tabrets, and other instruments, and singing " Saul has 
slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands /" 

Fanny. Did Saul know that David was appointed to 
succeed him in the government ? 

Mother. No. But this fatal pre-eminence, either in 
prowess or in fortune, ascribed to David by the people, was 
the signal for that cruel persecution through which he la- 
boured to the throne. Whether delighted by his address, 
or fearing the formidable impression he had made on the 
people, while he knew himself to be discarded, Saul would 
no more permit David to leave him, but kept him near his 
person, affecting to honour, though he envied and hated 
him. 

No quality is more imposing with the populace than 
military valour in times, of public danger. Exposed as 
were the Israelites to the incursions of their enemies, Da- 
vid might easily now have taken advantage of the ascend- 
ancy he had obtained in the affections of the people to 
supplant his master; and knowing himself to be divinely 
appointed, he might have soothed his conscience in the at- 
tempt ; nor did the reigning monarch take care to secure 
his allegiance by laying him under a debt of gratitude for 
personal kindness. But the integrity of David awaited the 
direction of providence, while he performed his own duties 
with such meekness and fidelity, that he soon became as 
great a favourite in the royal family, as he was with the 



SAUL PERSECUTES DAVID* 193 

people. Jonathan, the king's son, was united to him in the 
firmest friendship ; and Michal, his daughter, beheld the 
amiable youth with tender partiality. These flattering dis- 
tinctions in his own house, appeared to the distorted mind 
of the king no less than a tacit surrender of the crown 
which the increasing admiration of the people was pre- 
paring for his youthful rival, and so haunted his imagina- 
tion, that he attempted to destroy him at once by the stroke 
of a javelin, whilst he played on the harp in his presence ; 
or, as some suppose, while he assisted with his harp, at the 
family worship of the king, because it is said, that Saul 
prophesied^ or prayed, at the same time. 

Failing in his murderous attempt, and yet more enraged 
by the interposition of Jonathan in favour of his friend, 
the insidious monarch meditated the death of his dreaded 
rival in a way less odious even to his own feelings, while 
it seemed a concession to the desires of his subjects. The. 
command of a thousand men was given to David, and his 
best exertions incited by the promises of an union with 
Merab, the king's eldest daughter, as the reward of his 
success against the enemies of his country. 

Fanny. Why not bestow Michal, who had already 
given her heart to the young hero ? 

Mother, Saul was not then, perhaps, acquainted with 
the extent of her predilection for David, but it was not his 
intention to bestow either; for when David had earned the 
prom.ised honour, and expected to receive the hand of Me- 
rab, on his return from a successful expedition against the 
Philistines, he found her already married to another ! The 
discovery of Michal 's love now afforded the malicious 
king another opportunity of exposing the life of David. 
His servants were secretly instructed to flatter him with 
reports of the high estimation in which he was held by the 
king, and the fair prospect of becoming his son-in-law. 
But the modest shepherd, so far from presuming on his own 
merit, replied, that he did not consider himself entitled to 
so high an honour, his father's house was of no importance 
in Israel, nor was he rich enough to pay the dowry of a 
king's daughter. 

Fanny, The objection of David requires an explanation, 
mother. What did he mean by paying a dowry ? 
17 



194 PURSUES HIM TO NAIOTH. 

Mother. The customs of the East are sometimes the 
reverse of our own. The dowry of a daughter was a sum 
of money or goods, which a man paid on his marriage to 
the father of his wife. The objection was just what Saul 
desired, and was easily obviated by requiring of David 
only the slaughter of an hundred Philistines. Double that 
number of the king's enemies fell beneath the valiant arm 
of David ; and Saul, no longer able to elude his engage- 
ment, was obliged to give him the hand of his daughter. 

Charles, Saul would now be more tender of the life 
of his son-in-law. 

Mother. The policy of kings, my son, is not often di- 
rected or restrained by such associations as are held sacred 
by their subjects. The express design of Saul, in this case, 
disappointed in his hope of ridding himself of David by 
the hands of the Philistines, was, by marrying him to his 
daughter, to bring him more completely within the reach 
of his own wily schemes ; for his envy and rage increasing 
in proportion to the esteem and admiration of the people 
for David — he barbarously commanded his confidential 
servants, and even Jonathan, his most beloved friend, to 
slay him privately in the very presence of his wife. The 
affectionate pleading of Jonathan, however, averted his 
fate for the present, and David was again brought to soothe 
by the melody of his harp the desolating spirit of the mise- 
rable monarch. But his presence only aggravated the ma- 
lignant flame, and he w^as compelled to fly from the stroke 
of the javelin again aimed at his life, whilst he dexterously 
exercised his art, for the relief of his wicked persecutor. 

Both his wife and his friend, now believing no longer 
the insincere professions of their father, assisted him to es- 
cape to Ramah, where he found Samuel, and related to him 
all that had befallen him since the king had treacherously 
taken him into his service. 

Naioth, a city belonging to the sacerdotal tribe, and the 
site of one of Samuel's national schools, seemed to offer a 
secure retreat to the innocent refugee, and thither he went 
accompanied by Samuel. But neither the protection of the 
prophet — the entreaties of Jonathan — the affinity of David 
to his family — nor the sanctity of his retreat— withheld 
the infuriated monarch ; he not only sent messengers to 



FRIENDSHIP OF DAVID AND JONATHAN. 195 

Naioth, but went there himself to seize his prey ! Fortu- 
nately, however, the hunted chief was apprised of his ap- 
proach in time to make good his escape, and to improve 
the opportunity by a hasty visit to the city, to consult with 
his friend. In this stolen interview, the amiable prince, 
arguing rather from his own affectionate heart, than from 
any evidence on the part of Saul which might justify Da- 
vid in putting himself into his power, endeavoured vainly 
to persuade him to resume his accustomed place in the roy- 
al household — guarantying the safety of the one, by re- 
fusing to admit the objected turpitude of the other. At 
length, however, it was settled that the prince should try 
to mediate a jpeace^ and communicate the result to the un- 
happy fugitive, by a signal agreed on between them. 

Disappointed of his object, the enraged king returned to 
his house, and the feast of the New Moon, which happened 
the following day, afforded an opportunity to Jonathan to 
perform his generous purpose. The seat which David had 
been accustomed to occupy on public days, at the royal ta- 
ble, now empty, arresting the king's eye, he hypocritically 
inquired why the son of Jesse did not appear as usual. 
But the concerted plea and apology of Jonathan produced 
only a burst of madness, in which the javelin was now 
aimed at the life of his son, and his magnanimity reproach- 
ed with the charge of meanly promoting the ambitious de- 
signs of David to the downfall of his own house. Grieved 
by the baseness of his father — by the cruel insult offered 
to himself — and by the disappointment of his hope for his 
dearest friend, Jonathan hastily left the festive board, and 
met the son of Jesse at the appointed place in the fields. 
Obliged to acknowledge the result of his application to his 
father, the faithful pair met only to lament their ill-fated 
friendship — and to part with renewed vows of everlasting 
fidelity. 

Catherine. Why did not David, after all these vexations, 
retire to the peaceable habitation of his family, at Bethle- 
hem ? 

Mother. Designed to be the ruler of the nation, it was 
proper that he should be kept in their view, that his virtues 
and accomplishments might recommend him to their volun- 
tary acceptance, when the time for his elevation should 



196 DAVID COLLECTS AN ARMY AT ADULLAM. 

arrive ; I do not mean to say that such were the motives 
that actuated David. The conclusion arises from the usual 
course of Providence, who leads His subjects into such 
measures as are best suited to his own purposes. 

Finding the protection of the prophet of no avail, and 
still seeking an asylum from the wrath of Saul, David 
bent his way to the city of Nob, where the ark of the co- 
venant sojourned at this time ; but, finding there a man 
named Doeg, an Edomite, the chief herdsman of Saul, 
who might perhaps betray the place of his retirement to 
his master, whom he would not again provoke to violate 
the peaceful residence of the priests, he stayed only to obtain 
some refreshment from Abimelech, the chief priest, and 
the sword of Goliah, his famous antagonist, w^hich had 
been laid up in the tabernacle, and then proceeded to Gathc 

Here he was soon recognized as the hero who had been 
celebrated in songs for the slaughter of their champion, 
and their apparent hostility now reduced him to the sad 
necessity of feigning himself insane, until he found an 
opportunity of escaping to a great cave called Adullam, 
not far from the town of Bethlehem. To this dreary abode 
he was traced by his father's family, who immediately 
came thither to sympathise in his distress, or supply his 
necessities. But David could not see his father and his 
mother thus exposed to the fury of Saul ; he conducted 
them therefore to Moab, and having obtained from the 
king an asylum for them, returned to his cave. One, and 
another, discovered the retreat of the persecuted youth, and 
resorted to his fortress, until a little army of four hundred 
men were called about him. 

Meanwhile, the relentless monarch had led out his men 
to the heights of Gibeah, in pursuit of the fugitive — but 
not knowing which way to turn, and suspicious that his 
own servants were really in the service of David, he stood 
by and harangued them on the folly of suppovsing that they 
could obtain places and rewards under his rival, reproach- 
ing them with concealing from him the place of his re-* 
treat. Doeg, the herdman, who was amongst the attendants 
of the king, now supplied fuel to his fury, by informing 
him, that David had been hospitably received by Abime- 
lech, the priest. Abandoning himself, therefore, to his 



SAUL SLAYS THE PEOPLE OF NOB. 



197 



ungovernable passion, he summoned not only Abimelech, 
but all the inferior priests of Nob, to the number of eighty- 
five to answer for their conspiracy with his enemy. In 
vain the venerable priest declared his own perfect inno- 
cence, and his conviction of the loyalty and services of 
David, " the son-in-law of the king '."—sentence of instant 
death was pronounced on them all ! But no one except 
the wicked Edomite, would venture to put forth his hand 
against the priests of the Lord. Sole executioner, he 
gratified the tyrant, by slaying them all m his presence ! 
The whole city of Nob, both man and beast, was next 
sacrificed. One son of Abimelech, named Abiather, alone 
escaped, and carried inteUigence of the horrible tragedy to 
David who, lamenting the destruction he had innocently 
occasioned, assured the forlorn Abiather of his friendship 
and protection. 

An incursion of the Philistines, soon after these events, 
afforded David an opportunity of relieving a city of Judah, 
Keilah, which they had besieged, and of supplying his 
men, who now amounted to six hundred, with the spoil 
which he took from the aggressors. ^ 

Continually on the watch for the blameless object ot his 
jealousy, the restless monarch exulted when his spies in- 
formed him, that David had raised the siege of Keilah, 
and reposed with his men within its walls. Thither, 
therefore, he hastened— but David happily received intelli- 
gence of his approach, and learning, in answer to his 
pious inquiry, by means of the prophet Abiather, that the 
ungrateful inhabitants were prepared to deliver him up to 
the king— he escaped to the wilderness of Ziph. rrom 
Ziph he was again driven by the hostile disposition of the 
people, who gave notice to the king of the place of his 
retreat ; before his flight, however, he had the consolation 
of a visit from Jonathan, who supported him by the re-as- 
surance of his own unalterable regard— and his steady 
trust that his friend would one day fill the throne of Israel, 
notwithstanding the determined hatred of the king. 

Catherine. A wilderness I understand to be a barren 
wild, unfit for the habitation of man— how then did David 
find enemies in Ziph ? 

Mother. The tracts, to which the Israelites gave the 
17 # 



198 CAVERNS OF CANAAN. 

name of wilderness, or desert, were not altogether of that 
description ; they were extensive plains, uncultivated, but 
affording pasturage for their sheep and camels. Trees, 
shrubs, and springs, were found in some — though others 
were sterile, mountainous, and sandy. Such appears to 
have been the desert of Maon, to which David had fled 
before the arrival of Saul in the wilderness of Ziph. An 
invasion of Judah by the Philistines, now obliged the king 
to turn his arms against them, and gave David an oppor- 
tunity of escaping from Maon, where he had been nearly 
surrounded by the royal bands, to a shelter more secure 
in the caves of Engeddi. 

These caverns, so oflen mentioned in Scripture, abound- 
ed in the mountainous parts of Canaan. Some of them 
were immense, and were used by the people as places of 
refuge for themselves and their effects, during the incur- 
sions of their neighbours — an instance of which you will 
recollect in the time of Gideon — from which it would 
seem that the wretched Israelites were sometimes obliged 
to dig out and enlarge them for this very purpose. 

They are still seen by travellers in the " Holy Land." 
One who has given us a most delightful account of that 
ever-interesting portion of the earth, says, he found in one 
of these caves a gratefuLretreat from a sun so intensely 
hot, that not one of his party had sufficient resolution to 
abandon his umbrella, and descend from his horse, to col- 
lect the rare plants which sprung up in their path, although 
they were such as had not been described by former tra- 
vellers."^ 

In the spacious chambers of Engeddi the persecuted 
fugitive, Vvdth all his followers, remained during the war 
with the Philistines. — When that was finished, Saul again 
sallied out with three thousand men in search of David, 
and halted in their excursive march, at the mouth of En- 
geddi ; but David and his army lay within its deep re- 
cesses undiscovered ! 

Thus, for several years, was the king-elect of Israel 
pursued from one hiding place to another, sometimes in 
the depths of the forests, sometimes in the rocky clefls of 

* Clarke. 



DAVID SETTLES AT ZIKLAG. 199 

the mountains. Twice, in the course of this miserable 
warfare, the life of Saul was in his hand ; yet, although 
urged by his adherents to rid himself of his inveterate 
enemy, he spared him. 

Charles, Who could have blamed him for taking the 
life of a man whose groundless jealousy had made him 
so wretched, and who was in continual pursuit of his life ? 

Mother, In both instances the king was unconscious 
of David's approach. In one, he carried away his spear, 
which stuck in the ground, near his head, while he slept 
— and, in the other, cut off the skirt of his robe. Both 
were returned ; not vaunted, as trophies of his boldness, 
or generosity ; but as the unquestionable evidences of his 
loyalty; accompanied with an affecting remonstrance on 
the hard treatment he received. Had they met in open 
battle, David would have been equally tender of the life 
of Saul, whose person he held sacred, not merely as his 
rightful sovereign, but as the " anointed of the Lord." 
Obdurate as the heart of Saul had become, he was touched 
with these instances of the magnanimity of his servant, 
and confessing his prophetic fears that David should reign 
over Israel, he required of him an oath that he would not 
exterminate his family. 

But David was too well acquainted with Saul to confide 
in the transient starts of a tormenting conscience, which 
induced this seeming submission to his fate. Knowing 
himself insecure in any part of Saul's dominions, he 
passed over to Gath, and respectfully solicited an asylum 
for himself and his followers. Achish the king was 
pleased with the accession of a chief of David's high cha- 
racter, and readily bestowed on him Ziklag, a town near 
the border of Judah. Here they settled, David with his 
two w4ves, and his people, each with his own household, 
in a regular manner. 

Catherine, You had not before mentioned the two 
wives of David. Pray, was the king's daughter one of 
those who was reduced by her father to lead this wander- 
ing miserable life ? 

Mother, Saul had denied even this poor consolation to 
David : Michal had been given, in his absence, to an- 
other. Abigail, and Ahinoam, David had married during 



200 PRUDENT CONDUCT OF ABIGAIL. 

the years of his exile. The circumstances which intro- 
duced him to the former, who was a beautiful woman, are 
worth our notice, because they exemplify the influence of 
prudence and gentleness in the character of a wife. 

A descendant of Caleb, whoso name was Nabal, had 
large possessions, particularly in flocks, which fed on 
Mount Carmel, in the neighbourhood of one of David's 
wild fortresses. The festive season of sheep-shearing 
coming on, when great plenty abounded, he sent messen- 
gers to Nabal, who was found dispensing a princely enter- 
tainment, requesting some provisions for his men, who, in- 
deed, must oflen have been in want during their wandering 
life. But Nabal's churlish disposition was not touched by 
the misfortunes of the son of Jesse, nor yet by the intima- 
tion that his soldiers had not supplied their necessity from 
his innumerable herds ; but had rather guarded them, from 
the depredations of robbers, or the wild beasts of the wil- 
derness. The messengers were not only refused a partici- 
pation in the feast, but sent back to their chief with the 
insulting charge of following a man who had run away 
from his master ! 

The proud spirit of conscious innocence could not brook 
such ingratitude — two hundred men were left to take care 
of the camp, while the remaining four hundred, with their 
affronted leader, hastened to chastise the miserly Nabal. 
But, happily for all parties, before they reached his fields, 
they were met by Abigail, the fair wife of Nabal, attend- 
ed by servants, bearing refreshments of all sorts — raisins 
and wine, sheep ready dressed, corn, bread, and oil — to 
the camp of David. No sooner had she heard of the 
morose behaviour of her husband, than she set out, with- 
out consulting him, to prevent the evils his folly might 
occasion. More than her well-timed present, her graceful 
petition that David would pardon the transgressions of 
her husband, induced him to reconsider his angry enter- 
prise. Accepting her present, he confessed that she had 
been the providential means of preventing him from de- 
stroying every thing that belonged to Nabal ! 

The judicious conduct of Abigail in this instance may 
be a lesson to all women. In every station to which Provi- 



SAUL CONSULTS THE WITCH OF ENDOR 201 

dence has called them, they may find opportunities of 
mediating between violent men. 

When this prudent wife returned home, the intoxication 
of her husband, from his continued revels, prevented her 
from relating to him the cause of her absence. His sud- 
den death, however, in a few days, relieved her from the 
ill-suited bondage, and she became, soon after, the wife of 
David. 

Let us now return to the unhappy king, whom we shall 
find involved in difficulties more serious than the fancied 
rebellion of David. 

The Philistines had audaciously penetrated into the 
heart of his dominions, in such strength, that Saul, though 
naturally valiant, beheld them with dismay. Samuel, his 
faithful counsellor, had descended to the grave, amidst the 
lamentations of all Israel ; and David, his invincible cap- 
tain, had been driven by his suspicions to take refuge with 
strangers ! The Oracle of the Covenant returned no an- 
swer to his inquiries, nor was his clouded path enlightened 
by cheering dreams ! Abandoned thus on every side to his 
own inclinations, he now listened to the unhallow^ed advice 
of his servants, to consult a woman who had a " familiar 
spirit !" But, amongst other auspicious measures in the 
commencement of his reign, Saul had displayed a com- 
mendable disposition to execute the laws, by searching out 
and exterminating the watches, in obedience to a statute of 
Moses, that no such wicked pretender to supernatural 
powers should be suffered to live. When, therefore, the 
degenerate king appeared, in disguise, before the " witch 
of Endor," and entreated her to call up Samuel, the pro- 
phet, to his aid — she refused to expose herself to the 
vengeaisce of the king by the exercise of her forbidden 
arts. At length, induced by a solemn engagement, on his 
part, to conceal the whole transaction, though deterred, by 
some lingering sense of honour, from acknowledging his 
power to protect her— she consented — and the spirit of the 
venerated Samuel seemed to rise from the earth ! Astonish- 
ed, as it would seem, at the unexpected effect of her own 
vile incantations, and discovering, in the same moment, 
the real quahty of her visiter, the sorceress screamed 
aloud, and reproached him with practising on her credulity 



202 THE WITCH OF ENDOR. 

to ensnare her to her ruin — whilst the terrified monarch, 
unheeding her distress, bent submissively to the image of 
the departed saint, beseeching him to compassionate his 
misery, and tell him what he should do, for his enemies 
were in arms, and his petitions to his God were no longer 
regarded ! 

Catherine, Mother, what are we to think of the power 
of this woman to produce the apparition of the prophet ? 

Mother, It is not to be supposed, my daughter, that she 
had any efficient agency in the matter ; but that her magi- 
cal spells should be made to subserve the intentions of 
Providence accords with the system of immediate inter- 
position by which the Israelites were governed. 

The family of Saul had been set aside for his disobedi- 
ence to a divine command, delivered by Samuel. Samuel 
had told him at the time, what would be the consequences 
of his neglect : and now that the time had arrived when 
the punishment should be inflicted, it was consistent, that 
an apparition, resembling his late monitor, and a voice 
which he had feared — though disobeyed, should be sent to 
add to his awful sentence, " The Lord will deliver Israel 
with thee into the hand of the Philistines and to-morrow 
shalt thou and thy sons be with me /" Struck with un- 
speakable horror, the monarch fell prostrate on the earth : 
retiring life seemed not to wait the commissioned sword of 
the Philistines, and was hardly recalled by the affrighted 
woman who now sought her own pardon by uniting her 
assiduities with those of his attendants to restore their al- 
most dying lord ! 

Catherine. You do not suppose then, that the persons 
called witches and wizards in scripture, were possessed of 
any other power than that of imposing on the credulity of 
the people ? 

Mother. That the unprincipled persons called witches, 
and wizards, and necromancers, and magicians, and so on, 
were the agents of Satan, and influenced by him in their 
pernicious practices, is a defensible opinion : for we must 
surrender the testimony of Holy Writ before we can deny 
that Satan is permitted to exercise a limited degree of do- 
minion over this world. But we have the consolation also 
to know, that it is abridged under the gracious reign of 



2IKLAG BURNT. 203 

the Messiah. The titles by which our great enemy is dis- 
tinguished, such as, "the prince of this world," "the 
prince of darkness," the prince of the power of the air," 
and others, are indicative of some species of authority : 
nor is any thing more certain than the existence of a most 
deplorable disease in the early days of Christianity, which 
was ascribed to his taking entire possession of the afflicted 
party. Many instances, as you know, are related in the 
gospels of the removal of this malady by the simple com- 
mand of the Saviour. 

While Saul was thus hastening to his fate, the approach- 
ing war involved David in new troubles. During a resi- 
dence at Ziklag of between two and three years, he had 
inspired his protectors with such confidence in his friendly 
dispositions that the king of Gath proposed his going along 
with his troops to attack the Israelites. The dependent 
situation of David did not allow him to refuse, and he was 
obliged to set out with the Philistines ; though it is not to 
be believed that he would have acted in the field against 
his own country. But the chief officers of Achish, more 
sagacious than their lord, relieved him from the trying 
dilemma. The possibility that he might seize the oppor- 
tunity of conciliating his master, by turning his forces 
against his new friends, alarmed them to such a degree, 
that the king was obliged to yield to their clamours and 
send back the distrusted aliens. David and his party had 
been absent but three days from Ziklag ; but three days 
had prepared a scene of distress for their return ! The 
Amalekites, in revenge of a late incursion into their terri- 
tory by David, had made a hasty descent upon his city, 
laid the buildings in ashes, and carried away in triumph 
every thing on which they could lay their barbarous hands ; 
women, children, and cattle ; not even sparing the ladies of 
David's own family. 

The desolation of their domestic comforts afiecting all 
alike, one general burst of sympathetic sorrow at first be- 
wailed the disastrous scene ; but rage soon succeeded, and 
their equally bereaved chief was reproached as the sole 
cause of their sufferings ! The growing mutiny, however, 
was arrested by his promptitude; for, leading them in- 
stantly to the pursuit, the plunderers were overtaken, 



204 SATJL AND HIS SONS SLAIN. 

while, reposing after the fatigue of a hurried march, they 
celebrated their success in riotous merriment, and not only- 
all that had been carried from Ziklag was recovered, but 
much spoil was obtained which the Amalekites had taken 
from other places. A part of this latter David prudently 
distributed amongst his own people, and of the remainder 
he sent presents to each of the places where he had re- 
ceived shelter and kindness during his exile. 

Although the pen and the pencil have borrowed some of 
their finest subjects from the Bible, it yet contains many 
that remain untouched. The story before us is one of 
these. The distress of the Israelitish women on the irrup- 
tion of the barbarians — -the conflagration of their dwell- 
ings before their eyes, and their own captivity — the deso- 
late scene on the return of fathers, lovers, husbands — the 
united cries of grief and rage — the tumultuous rush of 
desperate men to pursue the spoilers, and the sudden reco- 
very of all their treasures, are affecting circumstances, on 
which genius might delight to dwell. 

In the mean time, a sanguinary conflict had strewed the 
mountains of Gilboa with the dead bodies of the Israelites. 
Saul himself, and three of his sons, found amongst the 
slain, completed the triumph of the Philistines. The glad 
tidings swiftly circulated through their territory, and the 
royal armour was displayed in the temple of Ashtaroth, 
their goddess. The head of the fallen king was severed 
from his body, and the latter contemptuously suspended on 
the wall of Beth-shan, a city of Issachar, but now in pos- 
session of their enemies. Other humiliations might be 
borne, but this indignity to their sovereign, however little 
he had been entitled to their reverence, was insupportable. 
Jabesh-gilead, especially, now remembered the deliverance 
he had so gallantly achieved for them, when they were be- 
sieged by the Ammonites in the beginning of his reign. A 
party of enterprising men, therefore, from that city, broke 
by night into Beth-shan, and carried off the remains of the 
king and his sons, and afler burying them in Jabesh with 
suitable honours, the inhabitants kept a fast of seven days. 

Charles, The grateful loyalty of the Gileadites is com- 
mendable, for we are not released from obligation to a 
benefactor, by his misconduct to others. But David, who 



SAUL^S MURDERER PUNISHED. 205 

had been hunted out of society, and kept in perpetual fear 
of his life by the cruel jealousy of the king, and whose 
way to the throne was now opened by the death of his 
rival, could not but have rejoiced in that event. 

Mother, Your opinion, my son, as to the rights of a 
benefactor, is correct ; and your supposition of David's 
feeling is, it must be admitted, the natural dictate of the 
heart; but just views of our social duties, will produce no- 
bler sentiments. Accustomed to consider his sovereign as 
the vicegerent of Jehovah, consecrated by his express com- 
mand, and voluntarily accepted by the nation, David was 
very differently affected when a young Amalekite, con- 
ceiving, like you, that his officious zeal would recommend 
him to the exiled chief, came to him on the third day after 
his return, to Ziklag, presenting the crown and bracelets 
of the king, and made the daring boast that his own hand 
had put an end to the life of that infatuated monarch. 

Saul had received a wound in the battle, and was dis- 
covered by this young man, on the ground, in the midst 
of his adversaries. His yet unsubdued spirit revolting from 
the prospect of falling alive into their hands, he had be- 
sought his armour-bearer to give the final blow, and thus 
deliver him from that indignity. The faithful page turned 
away from the sacrilegious service — but this stranger, who 
came up at the moment, acceded without scruple to the re- 
quest of the king : then tearing off the royal badges, he 
hastened to bring them to David, in confirmation of the 
deed. 

Charles. Did David betray no symptom of satisfac- 
tion, on the removal of his most bitter enemy ? 

Mother, Exactly the reverse — he received the relation 
with an exclamation of horror. " How !" cried he, " wast 
thou not afraid to lift thy hand against the Lord's anoint- 
ed? Thy blood be upon thy head, for thy mouth hath tes- 
tified against thee ;" and, turning to his servants, ordered 
the instant execution of the fawning regicide. Both he 
and his men rent their garments, and fasted and mourned 
for the disgrace of their country and the excision of the 
royal family. 

But the death of Jonathan, his beloved and faithful 
friend, was lamented by David with the deepest sorrow. 
18 



206 ISH-BOSHETH OPPOSED TO DAVID. 

•His elegy, on this mournful occasion, is a noble effusion of 
tenderness for both father and son : " The beauty of Is- 
rael (said he) is slain upon thy high places. How are the 
mighty fallen ! Ye mountains of Gilboa, let there be no 
dew, neither let there be rain, upon you, nor fields of 
offerings ; for there the shield of the mighty is vilely cast 
away, the shield of Saul, as though he had not been 
anointed with oil. Ye daughters of Israel, weep over Saul, 
who clothed you in scarlet with other delights, who put on 
ornaments of gold upon your apparel. How are the mighty 
fallen in the midst of the battle ! O ! Jonathan, thou wast 
slain in thine high places ! I am distressed for thee, my 
brother Jonathan : very pleasant hast thou been unto me : 
thy love to me was wonderful, passing the love of women !" 

Saul, however, having been the sole cause of David's 
self-banishment, he now took leave of his hospitable enter- 
tainer, and, with his little colony of adherents, returned to 
Canaan, and was immediately crowned at Hebron, by the 
house of Judah, his own tribe, in the thirtieth year of his 
age. (B. C. 1056.) 

The first recorded act of David's reign was a mark of 
respect to the memory of the late king. By a special mes- 
senger to Jabesh-gilead, he informed them that he was 
anointed king of Israel, and would certainly requite them 
for the kindness they had shown to their late lord and his 
sons. 

But new troubles at once assailed the pious king. Ish- 
bosheth, a son of Saul, survived the ruin of his house. No 
sooner was David crowned, than Ish-bosheth was set up at 
Mahanaim, beyond the Jordan, in opposition, by Abner, 
the commander of Saul's army, and a near relation of his 
family. Many of the tribes supporting his claim, while 
that of Judah adhered faithfully to David, a civil war en- 
sued, and the state was distracted some years between the 
contending parties. At length, Abner receiving an affront 
from his master, sent messengers to David, with an offer to 
bring about a general revolution in his favour. The ac- 
quisition of Abner was of prime consequence to the king, 
yet he required, as the passport even to an interview, that 
he should be accompanied by Michal, Saul's daughter, — 
at the same time she was formally demanded of Ish-bosheth 



ISH-BOSHETH ASSASSINATED. 



207 



as the right of King David. The cause of the former, con- 
tinually weakening, and now receiving a death-blow from 
the intrigues of Abner, he did not venture to refuse this 
act of justice, but took the princess " from her weepmg 
husband," and sent her by the hand of Abner to the kmg. 
This letter of recommendation procured the ambassador 
and his train such distinction at court, as excited the jea- 
lousy of David's chiefs. Joab, especially, a man cruel knd 
ambitious, having lost a brother by the sword of Abner, m 
a late skirmish, affected to consider the new favourite as a 
spy, and seized the opportunity of gratifying his own re- 
venge, whilst he put an end, at once, to his growing con- 
sequence in the state, by assassinating him, with circum- 
stances of base treachery, as he was departing from the 

city. 

Catherine. These people seem to have had no idea of 
the atrocious guilt of murder : I hope it was punished in 
this instance, aggravated as it was by a breach of hospi- 
taUty. 

Mother. Their knowledge was less defective than their 
practice. David himself was probably induced to spare 
Joab, because both he and his brother, Abishai, were ex- 
peri^ced soldiers, and very necessary to him in the unset- 
tled state of his kingdom. He nevertheless declared his 
abhorr^ce of the deed, and buried Abner with funeral 
honours, himself following the bier as chief mourner, and 
fasting the whole day, because, as he said, " a great prince 
had fallen in Israel-" Nor did he show the same lenity to 
Rechab and Baanah, two captains of Ish-bosheth, who, 
soon afterwards, perceiving the falling fortunes of their 
master, assassinated him while he reposed in the heat of 
the day, and brought his head as a tribute to his rival. 
David told them they had mistaken his character ; for if 
he had not pardoned the man, who, to ingratiate himself, 
had violated the person of Saul, his implacable enemy, — 
" much less would he spare them, who had slain a righteous 
person, in his own house, upon his bed." 

The Israelites being now weary of intestine convulsions, 
^nd their minds prepared by the persuasive reasoning of 
Abner, no attempt was made to set up a successor to Ish- 
bosheth ; but the elders of all the tribes repaired with one 



208 JERUSALEM TAKEN. 

accord to Hebron, where David had now reigned seven 
years and six months, and proclaimed him king over all 
Israel. (B. C. 1048.) 

Chiii'les, Poor David has had a turbulent passage from 
the sheep-cote to the throne. I hope he was now permitted 
to reign in peace. 

Mother, David was a man of war from his youth all 
his days, with but few intervals of peace. His whole life 
illustrates our daily experience, that neither public honours 
nor private virtue will ensure unmingled happiness in this 
mutable world ; and admonishes us to look for our reward 
only in that better state of things, " where all tears shall 
be wiped from our eyes." 

Even now, when the hearts of all Israel were united in 
his favour, Jerusalem, which he chose for the seat of his 
government, was to be won by a contest with the natives, 
before he could enjoy the throne to which he had been 
called. Jerusalem, or Jebus, its original name, had been 
taken and burnt by the Israelites early in the time of the 
Judges. The natives again obtaining possession, had re- 
built the city, and held it until it was attacked by king 
David. Their resolute defence induced him to promise the 
chief command of the army to him who should signalize 
himself in the capture ; and the valour of Joab obtained 
that reward. The citadel, v/hich had been hitherto called 
Zion^ he enlarged ; and strengthened its fortifications. It 
v/as now called the city of David — here he fixed his resi- 
dence, and Jerusalem continued to be the metropolis of the 
empire until the time of its destruction. 

A few years of peace, perhaps five or six, succeeding 
to the conquest of Jerusalem, were employed in the organ- 
ization of the government, both church and state. Ever 
mindful of his religious duties, one of the first cares of 
this illustrious prince was to revive and establish the public 
worship of the God of Israel, which had been neglected 
many years. To this end, after a consultation with the 
elders, he prepared a tabernacle for the reception of the 
" Ark of the Covenant," and then, attended by a vast mul 
titude of the chief men, princes, priests, singers, musicians 
and other officers of the sanctuary, went to Kirjath-jearim 



THE ARK BROUGHT TO JERUSALE3f. 209 

where the ark had remained nearly fifly years, with but 
little interruption, and brought it up to Jerusalem. Hymns 
of praise, composed by the royal poet himself, for the oc- 
casion, accompanied by the sound of trumpets and cymbals, 
of psalteries, harps, and timbrels, were sung as the ark 
moved along, and when it was deposited in its place. — 
Sacrifices were then offered, and a general distribution of 
bread and wine, from the king to all his people, closed the 
solemn festival. 

The accession of David to the throne of Israel was 
speedily acknowledged by congratulations from the neigh- 
bouring princes. — Amongst others, Hiram, king of Tyre, 
sent an embassy, and with it a valuable present of the fine 
cedars of Lebanon, and skilful workmen, to build for him 
a palace, which was immediately commenced. But when 
the stately structure was finished, David was struck with 
the disparity between his own splendid dwelling, and the 
humble tabernacle of the Lord of Hosts, who had raised 
him from obscurity to pre-eminence ! " Shall I," said he, 
" dwell in a house of cedar, whilst the Ark of God is en- 
circled only with curtains ?" Unaccustomed, however, in 
matters of importance, to act upon the suggestions of his 
own mind without a superior guide, he sent for Nathan, 
the prophet, and communicated his desire to erect a temple 
better suited to the glory which emanated from beneath 
the wings of the cherubim. The prophet at first encou- 
raged him to go on with his design, but afterwards, when 
better instructed, informed him that that honour was denied 
unto him, who had been " a man of war," and was re- 
served for his successor — a son w^ho was yet to be born — 
" a man of peace," with whom " the kingdom should be 
for ever established." 

The king submitted, without a murmur, to this decree, 
and repaired to the sanctuary, to render his heartfelt ac- 
knowledgments for the gracious promise with which it was 
accompanied. 

Disappointed in the first object of his laudable ambition, 

David now looked around for other channels to receive his 

royal munificence. Inquiring particularly for the house 

of Saul, he found a son of his firm and early friend Jona* 

18* 



210 CANAAN CONQUERED BY DAVIH. 

than, who had lived unknown and unnoticed since the 
death of his father. — Mephibosheth, a child at the time of 
the late revolution, had been precipitately carried away by 
his nurse, and had lost the use of his limbs by a fall from 
her arms in the hurry of her flight. 

Fanny. The discovery of a child of Jonathan, would 
be most delightful to the king — no doubt he rejoiced in 
being «ible to protect him ? 

Mother, Nothing could have been more soothing to his 
tender recollection of Jonathan. The forlorn prince was 
immediately conducted to court, and treated like the chil- 
dren of the king. His father's estates were restored ta 
him, and Ziba, a servant who had attended him in his ad- 
versity, was commanded to cultivate them for his master 
and himself. 

From these pleasant occupations the warlike king was 
again summoned to the field. The restless enemies of Is* 
rael again appeared in arms. The Moabites, the Ammon- 
ites, the Syrians, and others, were engaged, and subdued, 
not now as heretofore, partially, but completely — their 
towns were garrisoned by Israelites — tributes were exacted 
— and at length the whole extent of that land which had 
been originally promised to the posterity of Abraham, was,, 
according to the prophecy, brought under the dominion of 
David. 

But the conquest of Edom was that which most contri- 
buted to the subsequent greatness of his empire ; for he 
thereby became possessed of Elath and Ezion-geber, two 
ports on the Red Sea, which opened to him all the trade 
of the East, the source of his immense wealth. 

Funny, I do not remember to have read of any trade 
carried on by David. 

Mother, I am not surprised at yaur confession. It is 
a common thing to pass over circumstances of apparent 
insignificance, which, nevertheless, elucidate or confirm 
others of moment. The abundance of gold and silver in 
Jerusalem has been ridiculed by those who would not take 
the trouble to examine whence they came. They did not 
fall from the clouds on this favoured king and his illustri* 
ous son Solomon; but were imported from India,^ from 



pa^ 



DAVID MARRIES BATH-SHEBA. 211 

Persia, from Africa, and Arabia, by the Red Sea, to 
Ezion-geber and Elath, and this is believed to be the origin 
of the East India trade, which has been so immensely 
profitable to our merchants since the passage round the 
Cape of Good Hope was discovered.* 

Hitherto we have seen this excellent man respectable 
for his virtues, and adhering to his duty against the 
strongest temptations. How painful it is, that candour 
requires us to exhibit the reverse of this picture ! But the 
uses of history are perverted when partiality conceals the 
defects of those who make a conspicuous figure on its 

The divine compositions of David will ever be the re- 
cord of his unquestionable piety — and the general tenor 
of his life was remarkable for its rectitude. Yet David 
fell into aggravated sin ; and the fall of such a man is an 
everlasting confirmation of that sacred truth, that " the 
heart is desperately wicked ;" and should teach us " not to 
be high-minded, but fear." 

Against Syria, and Moab, and others, in the wars just 
mentioned, the king went in person, and returned with 
spoils of immense value, especially utensils of silver and 
gold, which were all dedicated to the decoration and ser- 
vice of the temple which his son was to build. He re- 
mained after these fatiguing exertions in Jerusalem, and 
sent Joab against the Ammonites. 

In this fatal season of repose, while every thing was 
flourishing, at home and abroad, he fell violently in love 
with a very beautiful woman named Bath-sheba, the wife 
of one of his officers ! Surrendering himself wholly 
to his passion, he wrote secretly to the general, com- 
manding him to assign the most dangerous^ post to Uriah, 
the husband of Bath-sheba. No man was better qualified 
than the wily Joab to execute the cruel purpose of his 
master. The devoted Uriah soon fell by the sword of the 
enemy, and the fair Bath-sheba was pubHcly declared the 
wife of king David I 

This shocking deed was the deep stain of David's life 



* See Prideaux, bcK)k i. p. 4. 



212 CONVICTION OF DAVID. 

yet he continued insensible for an incredible time. He waa^ 
awakened, at length, by the prophet Nathan — who was 
commissioned to reprove him by seeming to lay before the 
chief magistrate, the complaint of a man who had been 
wronged by his neighbour. 

" There were two men in one city," said the prophet, 
" the one rich, and the other poor. The rich man had 
exceeding many flocks, and herds ; but the poor man had 
nothing, save one little ewe-lamb, which he had bought, 
and nourished up : and it grew up together with him, and 
with his children ; it did eat of his own meat, and drank 
of his own cup, and lay in his bosom, and was unto him 
as a daughter. 

" And there came a traveller unto the rich man, and he 
spared to take of his own flock and of his own herd, to 
dress for the way-faring man that was come unto him ; 
but took the poor man's lamb, and dressed it for the man 
that was come to him." 

This forcible appeal to his native sense of right and 
wrong, awakened the just indignation of the king — but 
his conscience still slept ! "As the Lord liveth," he 
hastily answered, " the man that hath done this thing shall 
surely die — and he shall restore the lamb fourfold, because 
he did this thing, and because he had no pity." So quick- 
sighted are we to the faults of others, and so blinded to 
0ur own ! 

Completely subjected to the dominion of his passions, 
nothing less than the direct application of the case to him- 
self would have produced conviction to the guilty king. 
" Thou art the man" — said the prophet — -and the whole 
turpitude of the transaction stood before him, while the 
messenger of God pronounced the just judgment that 
awaited his crime ! Pierced to the very soul, the humbled 
monarch breathed not a syllable in extenuation, but pros- 
trate on the earth, he acknowledged his transgression with 
fasting and tears. 

The fifty-first psalm in our translation, which he wrote 
on this sad occasion, is a lively transcript of his penitence, 
— the sacrifice of " a broken spirit, and a contrite heart !" 

Catherine • I hope the penitence of David was accept- 



REBELLION OF ABSALOM. 213 

ed without the infliction of a penalty, seeing how much 
he had suffered before he came to the throne. 

Mother. That ought not to be desired. His sin was 
enormous, and his high example was dangerous to the 
morals of the nation. His pardon might be known only 
to himself; but as his crime had been notorious, it was 
proper that his punishment should be exemplary ; and 
it came in that bitter form, which, of all others, human 
nature is least able to bear ! "I will raise up evil against 
thee, out of thine own house." Accordingly, horrible 
immoralities were committed by his sons — one fell by the 
hand of another — and Absalom, the most engaging, the 
most beloved of them all, accomplished the climax of his 
father's afllictions by exciting a rebellion against him ! 

Catherine, Was it possible to excite a rebellion against 
a monarch so excellent, and so much beloved by his 
people 1 

Mother, The populace of every country are restless, 
and the Israelites, as you have seen, were exceedingly ca- 
pricious. Their affections were too easily diverted from 
their venerable king to the aspiring prince, whose incom- 
parably fine person was the idol of their imagination. 
The splendour of his equipage, unlike the modest demean- 
our of his brother, who conformed to the common custom 
of riding on mules, gratified their pride, whilst the conde- 
scension of his manners persuaded them that the base in- 
sinuations against the administration of his father, arose 
from a genuine interest in their welfare. All this too was 
aggravated by the circumstance that he had but lately 
been restored to the favour and presence of the king, 
from which his misconduct had banished him for several 
preceding years. 

Having thus, by an imposing appearance, and deceitful 
caresses, prepared the way for the execution of his scheme, 
the rebel son obtained leave to repair to Hebron, under the 
pretext of performing a vow, which he had made during 
his exile in Syria. A small party of two hundred men, 
who, without any suspicion of his design, had attended 
him from Jerusalem, were soon swelled into a formidable 
army by additions from all the tribes, amongst whom his 



214 THE KING LEAVES JERtJSALE]\I. 

emissaries had been employed to sow the seeds of discon- 
tent, and erect the standard of Absalom in Hebron. 

It would be superfluous to dwell on the overwhelming 
shock which this blow gave to the confiding king and af- 
fectionate parent. Yet he was not wholly deserted — 
many of his faithful servants rallied round him, and de- 
clared their resolution to obey him alone. But David was 
not ignorant that this was the vial of wrath intimated by 
the prophet, and that submission to his punishment be- 
came him. He proposed, therefore, to his friends, that they 
should give way to the approaching tempest by retiring 
from the capital, and awaiting at a distance the returning 
favour of Providence. 

Can imagination paint a more affecting picture than this 
sad event in David's life ? A multitude of people, men, 
women, and children, abandoning their homes — the minis- 
ters of religion, priests, and levites, in white garments, 
bearing the awful depository of the covenant — and, in the 
midst, the weeping monarch, attended by his family, and 
his counsellors — flying from the hostility of a degenerate, 
yet beloved son ! 

Still more interesting was the scene when having passed 
the brook Cedron, murmuring softly through the vale 
which separates Jerusalem from Mount Olivet, he was 
obliged to consult his own safety by sending back several 
of his most valued friends, Zadok, and Abiathar, and 
others, to watch the progress of the conspiracy in the 
city. To afford a plausible pretext for dismissing the 
priests, he also sent back the Ark with this submissive re- 
flection — " If I find favour in the eyes of the Lord, he 
will bring me again and show me both it and his habita- 
tion." 

The mournful procession then moving on, the affecting 
scene cannot be better described than it is by the historian. 
" And David went up by the ascent of Mount Olivet, and 
wept as he went up ; and had his head covered, and h@ 
went barefoot ; and all the people that went with him, co- 
vered every man his head, and they went up, weeping as 
they went up." 

Catherine, The sacred historian has, in my opinion, 



March of david. 215 

evinced his superlative judgment, by relating a scene so 
full of interest in the very simplest language. The figures 
of rhetoric would have weakened its effect. What a spot 
is here for the traveller in the Holy Land to stand, after a 
lapse of more than two thousand years, on this very 
mount where the king of Israel stood— now climbing the 
ascent beneath a weight of years and sorrow— nov/ turn- 
ing to breathe a silent prayer towards the sanctuary for 
his erring son ! 

Mother. Dr. Clarke seems to have felt all the enthu- 
siasm, you imagine the scene might inspire. He has given 
us a most animated view of his impressions whilst he 
looked down on the venerable city from this eminence. 
" Abstracted," he says, " from every religious view, and 
considered solely as a subject for the most gifted genius in 
poetry, or in painting, it is perhaps impossible to select a 
theme more worthy the exercise of exalted talents. Every 
thing that is sublime and affecting, seems to be presented 
in the description of the procession or march of David, in 
his passage across the Kedron, and particularly in the 
moment when the Ark of the Covenant is sent back, and 
the aged monarch, having in vain entreated Tttai to leave 
him, begins to ascend the mountain, preceded by the vari- 
ous people said to form the van of the procession. Every 
wonderful association of natural and artificial features, of 
landscape, and of architecture, of splendid and diversified 
costume, of sacred pomp, and of unequalled pathos, dig- 
nify the affecting scene ; here, a solemn train of mourners ; 
there, the seers, the guardians, and companies of the Ark, 
men, women, children, warriors, statesmen, citizens, 
priests, levites, counsellors; — with all the circumstances 
of grandeur displayed by surrounding objects ; by the se- 
pulchres of the valley ; by the lofty rocks, the towers, 
bulwarks, and palaces of Sion ; by the magnificent per- 
spective on every side ; by the bold declivities and lofty 
summits of Mount Olivet; and finally by concentration of 
all that is great and striking in the central group distm- 
guished by the presence of the afflicted monarch." 

Yet, in this afflicting scene— in this most trying moment, 
the native generosity of David's temper did not forsake 



216 VICTORS IN THE WOOD OF EPKRAOI. 

him. Seeing amongst his followers a stranger named 
Ittai, who had but lately come into Jerusalem, he besought 
him not to involve himself in the misfortunes of a fallen 
king, but return to his dwelling, and enjoy the protection 
of the prosperous Absalom ! But Ittai persisted in his 
fidelity, and refused to leave him. A little further on, a 
man of the house of Benjamin, the tribe of Saul, assailed 
him with curses, and even threw stones at the sacred per- 
son of the king, insolently charging him with the blood of 
Saul, and of his sons! The enraged people would have 
torn him in pieces, but David bade them to forbear — " Be- 
hold," said he, " my son seeketh my life — how much more 
may this Benjamite do it !" 

On the top of Mount Olivet, yet another wound was 
added — Ziba the steward of Mephibosheth, who came with 
a supply of bread and fruits, and wine, to the weary travel- 
lers, informed the king that his ungrateful master had em- 
braced the party of the usurper ! 

By this time the unfeeling prince was received in Jeru- 
salem with acclamations of " God save the king" — and 
had accepted the offered services of Hushai, one of the 
spies who had been sent back to give intelligence to David. 
Hushai being a very judicious man, was gladly taken into 
the privy council, and thereby enabled to inform his mas- 
ter that a numerous army w^as in pursuit of him, and 
therefore he could not remain in safety on the western side 
of Jordan. The river was accordingly passed, and David's 
little band encamped in a wilderness of Gilead. Here 
they received an abundant supply of all sorts of provisions 
from Barzillai, a man of immense wealth, and a zealous 
partizan of the house of David. 

Compelled now to act in defence of his own life, of his 
kingdom, and of his people, the afflicted monarch reluc- 
tantly organized his forces into three divisions ; appointing 
Joab, Ittai, and Abishai commanders, and determined to 
go in person to the field. But the unwillingness of his 
friends to endanger the person of their king, compelled 
him to abandon his purpose and remain behind in the city 
of Mahanaim. Reviewing them, therefore, with deep 
anxiety from the gate of the city as they passed out to 



DEATH OP ABSALOM. 217 

meet the hostile army, — he gave, in the hearing of all — 
one solemn charge at parting — to " deal gently for his 
sake with the young man, even with Absalom !" 

The awful state of suspense in which the wretched 
father was left, was not of long continuance : the two 
armies soon met in the " wood of Ephraim," and the loya- 
lists were greatly victorious, although far inferior in num- 
bers. 

Charles. Ephraim, if I remember right, lay on the 
western side of Jordan ; did the armies then recross the 
river before the engagement ? 

Mother, The tribe of Ephraim was, as you have said, 
located on the western side ; but on the eastern, in that 
territory which had been given to the half tribe of Ma- 
nasseh, v/as the place called the " Wood of Ephraim," be- 
cause, as some suppose, it was the place where two and 
forty thousand Ephraimites were slain in a civil war with 
the Gileadites, in the days of Jephthah. You will find the 
story in the twelfth chapter of Judges. Many of these 
subordinate incidents I omit in my summary, because they 
are not necessary to the connection of the whole, and I 
fear being tedious. Nor would I detain you at this event- 
ful moment with a remark on the wood of Ephraim, but 
that we are led to look for some peculiarity in illustration 
of the expression that " the wood devoured more than the 
sword." 

Fanny, I am always glad to have an explanation of an 
ambiguous passage, yet this occurring in a place so inte- 
resting it is some tax upon my patience. 

Mother, We need only suppose the wood of Ephraim 
to have been unusually close, and almost impenetrably 
entangled with low branches and underwood ; so that the 
defeated Israelites, who might have escaped in the open 
plain, were there easily overtaken by the small number to 
whom Providence had awarded the victory. The unnatu- 
ral prince himself became a most memorable example of 
the displeasure of Heaven against undutiful children. At- 
tempting to elude the pursuers, his mule passed under the 
low boughs of a great oak, which caught his long and 
now dishevelled hair — the pride and the ornament of his 
19 



218 DAVID LAMENTS ABSALOM. 

elegant person — whilst the mule, continuing her flight, lefl 
him unable to disengage himself. In this distressing situa- 
tion he was presently discovered by a soldier of Joab's 
party, who, remembering the injunction of the father, went 
on with the tidings to his commander, expecting, no doubt^ 
that Absalom would be immediately relieved from impend- 
ing death. Joab, however, not only derided the man's 
asseveration that a thousand shekels of silver should not 
tempt him to violate the king's order — but hastened him- 
self to the fatal spot, and, with his own hand, put an end 
to the hfe of the misguided Absalom ! Yet, affecting to 
honour the blood-royal at the same time, he refused to 
send any intelligence to the city on that day, because " a 
son of the king had fallen !" The next day, however, two 
messengers were despatched with congratulations to the 
king on the suppression of the rebellion, and the quiet re- 
turn of all who escaped from the sword. The unhappy 
father was found waiting, with unceasing solicitude, at the 
gate of the city. The cheerful salutation of " tidings my 
lord, the king, for the Lord hath avenged thee this day of 
them that rose up against thee," scarcely met his ear. " Is 
the young man Absalom safe ?" was the first inquiry of 
his labouring soul. " The enemies of my lord, the king, 
and all that rise up to do thee hurt, be as that young man 
is !" conveyed the overwhelming answer. But here de- 
scription must fail — the heart of a parent, only, can tell 
the effect ! Weeping, and exclaiming — " O my son Absa- 
lom — O Absalom, my son, my son, would God, I had died 
for thee !" — he retired to the chamber over the gate, and 
gave himself up to unutterable anguish ! 

The party of the usurper completely subdued, Joab led 
his troops back to Mahanaim ; but, hearing of the exces- 
sive grief of the king, and conscious of their neglect of 
his injunction, no trophies were displa3^ed, but every man 
quietly stole into the city as if they had f.ed from a defeat. 
Respect and commiseration for their venerable monarch, 
suppressed every feeling of joy — no voice but that of sym- 
pathy was heard in the streets — whilst he continued shut 
up in his apartment regardless of every thing ! The re- 
storation of his crown was as nothing — the returning love 



DAVID RETURNS TO JERUSALEM. 219 

of his people was unavailing — Absalom, his dear, his 
lamented Absalom, alone absorbed every concern ! 

Fanny, Was it not unnatural, mother, that David should 
so deeply lament over a son who was killed in the very 
act of seeking his life ? David, too, so full of pious resig- 
nation in many severe trials? 

Mother. It was perfectly natural — for the criminality 
of the son, and the piety of the father, did but aggravate 
the sorrow of David. Religion may enable us to resign 
the most lovely and virtuous of our children ; but to have 
one cut off in the commission of a sin, almost beyond the 
hope of mercy, is too much for human nature to endure ! 
But I am saying what you, my children, cannot under- 
stand — a parent only can know the feelings of a parent ! 
Joab, it is probable, was not a father, for we find he could 
not apologize for the amiable tenderness of the king, when 
he found the people beginning to murmur at the continued 
indulgence of his immoderate grief; but went boldly to 
his chamber and expostulated on the impolicy of his con- 
duct. " The people and the princes," said he, " might 
have perished ; so that Absalom had been saved, you 
would have been satisfied ! Come forth from this unreason- 
able seclusion, let the people see that you are not insensi- 
ble to their interests, or ungrateful for their love, otherwise 
a more general disaffection will quickly prevail." 

By such arguments, harsh as they were at that all- 
subduing hour, the dejected monarch was gradually drawn 
from his exclusive devotion to one sad subject, and obliged 
again to participate in the turmoil of government. 

The rebels, intimidated by the destruction of their army, 
of whom twenty thousand, together with their leader, had 
fallen in the field, intimated their willingness to return to 
the peaceable sway of their sovereign. David still wait- 
ing in Mahanaim for some decided expression of the pub- 
lic voice in his favour, and disappointed that the first over- 
ture had not come from his own tribe, sent messengers to 
Zadok, and Abiathar, the priests, to inquire, why they of 
his own house were less forward than others had shown 
themselves, to replace him on the throne ; and to Amasa, 



220 sheba's insurrection. 

the chief captain of the rebels, he sent a full pardon, and 
an assurance that he should take the place of Joab, whose 
violent and intriguing disposition was incompatible with 
peace. 

This affecting message produced an instant invitation to 
their king to return. Accordingly he left Mahanaim, and 
was received at the river by the whole tribe of Judah, who 
had marched out to conduct him home. — Shimei, the 
wretch who had so cruelly insulted him as he crossed the 
Mount of Olives, came also at the head of a thousand 
Benjamites, and, falling at his Ceet, entreated forgiveness ; 
this was readily granted, although his friends protested 
against such unmerited clemency to a man who had even 
cursed the king in his bitter adversity. Barzillai, too, 
though now four-score years of age, conducted the king 
over Jordan, and was kindly invited to leave all his pos- 
sessions in Gilead, and proceed to Jerusalem and live at 
the royal table the remainder of his life. But Barzillai, 
declining the generous offer on account of his great age 
and- his desire to remain near the grave of his fathers, 
presented his son Chimham, who might receive any re- 
compense v/hich the king's liberality thought due to the 
services of his father. The son was received with the 
kindest assurances of favour, and the aged friends sepa- 
rated with expressions of affectionate friendship. Thus 
the king's journey commenced with the prospect of a 
happy restoration to his crown. 

These auspicious omens were interrupted before the ex- 
iles had gone far from the river, by a multitude of the 
northern tribes, who met, and reproached the men of Ju- 
dah with having repaired to the king without calling them 
to partake of the honour. Nor would they accept the apo- 
logy, that the king being their relative, it became them to 
be foremost in demonstrations of duty. " Vv e have ten 
parts in the king, although he be of your house," replied 
the malcontents, and an altercation ensued, which resulted 
in the abrupt departure of the assailants, headed by a man 
named Sheba, who, blowing a trumpet, proclaimed loudly, 
" We have no part in David, nor inheritance in the son of 
Jesse." 



JOAB MADE COMMANDER. 221 

Catherine, Then the recent wounds of civil war, not 
yet healed, were again laid open ? 

Mother, The activity of the king and his officers pre- 
vented that catastrophe ; for an army was dispatched im- 
mediately after their arrival at Jerusalemy- in pursuit of the 
insurgents. The city of Abel, in which they had fortified 
themselves, was besieged, and the surrender of Sheba the 
ringleader, was required to purchase the safety of its in- 
habitants. These terms were accepted, the head of the 
unfortunate Sheba was thrown over the wall, and peace 
was once more restored to Israel. But the glory of this 
result was tarnished by the treacherous murder of Amasa, 
the commander of the expedition, by Joab, whose spirit 
could not endure the punishment inflicted by the king, in 
depriving him of the chief command, and bestowing it on 
Amasa. 

Fanny. What became of Mephibosheth, who, you told 
us, had ungratefully followed Absalom. 

Mother. He appeared among the first to express his 
joy on the return of his benefactor ; his infirmity alone 
had prevented his attendance, and afforded an opportunity 
to the false Ziba to slander him and obtain for himself the 
estates of his master. He had remained in solitude, with- 
out shaving his beard, or changing his clothes, during the 
whole absence of the king, and now gladly returned to his 
former place at the royal table. 

Some reforms in the offices of state were made at this 
time, and Joab was replaced at the head of the army. 
That such a man should be continued in service, and hold 
an honourable post, seems wonderful to us ; but his zeal in 
the cause of his master had been the apology for his most 
atrocious acts, and now that David was far advanced in 
life, the experience of Joab was particularly useful. For 
even at this late period his reign was not finished without 
new disturbances from the Philistines, the most restless of 
all the contiguous powers. 
19* 



( 222 ) 



KINGS AND CHRONICLES* 



Mother, The determination which had been signified 
to David, by Nathan the prophet,- that he should not him- 
self erect a temple to Jehovah, did not lessen his desire to 
glorify the Most High, nor abate his zealous promotion of 
every means for the advancement of his magnificent plan; 
but rather stimulated his industry in collecting materials 
to facilitate the labour of Solomon, his son and successor. 
By his trade to the East, and his numerous and success- 
ful wars, he had acquired an immense quantity of silver 
and gold, of brass, iron, and precious stones ; and a prodi- 
gious quantity of all these materials was laid up for the 
contemplated building, and workmen were employed in 
preparing timber and stone. 

From his youth, the life of David had been a scene of 
affliction and fatigue : under their corroding influence he 
became entirely debilitated in his sixtieth year, and unable 
any longer to appear in public ; but his mental powers 
being yet unimpaired, his ministers attended in his cham- 
ber, and from his bed received his usual direction and 
advice. 

In this state of affairs, Adonijah, the brother of Absa- 
lom, and now the eldest son of the king, incited a party, 
into which he had the address to draw even Joab and the 
priest Abiathar, to set him on the throne. Adonijah, like 
Absalom, had a fine form and insinuating manners : his 
father's fond indulgence had allowed him to imitate his ill- 
fated brother in the splendour of his retinue ; and being 
now entitled, by primogeniture, to the succession, he might 

* The books of Kings and Chronicles are here classed together, be- 
cause they treat of the same period of history ; one relating some 
things omitted in the other. The story is taken indiscriminately, 
from both. The Chronicles appear to have been compiled afler the 
captivity, from ancient and authentic documents. 



ADOPTIJAH TAllDONED. 223 

have thought it but a venial fault to put the crown on his 
head during the hfe of his declining parent. A great en- 
tertainment was accordingly prepared at Gihon, a place 
very near to Jerusalem, and all things were in readiness 
for the consummation of his scheme, when it was disco- 
vered by the prophet Nathan, and by him communicated 
to Bath-sheba, the mother of Solomon. By his advice she 
repaired instantly to the king, and bowing herself to the 
ground, respectfully reminded him, that he had promised 
her upon his oath, that Solomon, her son, should reign. 
While they yet talked on the subject, Nathan came in to 
inform the king of the assemblage at Gihon, and the 
usurpation of Adonijah. Not a moment did he hesitate to 
confirm his promise v/ith a solemn asseveration to the mo- 
ther of Solomon ; but seeing the cruel contests to which 
the kingdom was about to be exposed by the rivalry of the 
princes, he resolved to put the question at rest whilst he 
yet had the power. Calling, therefore, for Zadok the 
priest, he commanded him to set Solomon on the king's 
own mule, and, attended by the officers of state and a 
party of the military, to take him to Gihon, and there 
anoint him and proclaim him king over Israel. 

The sound of the trumpets, and the shouts of " God 
save king Solomon," soon reached the ears of Adonijah 
and his party, and as quickly dispersed them : the usurper 
himself, taking refuge at the foot of the altar, laid hold of 
its horns, and refused to depart until the young king should 
assure him a pardon. 

Fanny, I do not know what may be the policy of kings ; 
but I shall certainly be glad to hear that the first royal act 
of Solomon was one of mercy to his brother. 

Mother. He did pardon Adonijah, and moreover as- 
sured him of protection so long as he remained a peaceable 
subject. The faults of Joab and Abiathar were likewise 
passed over for the present. 

Passing rapidly through the busy and tempestuous life 
of David, w^e have now arrived at its closing year. Al- 
though his bodily powers were exhausted, still the pious 
and the patriotic soul was alive to the glory of God and 
the welfare of Israel. His design to build the temple had 



224 David's dying charge. 

been published, and Solomon had been placed on the 
throne, according to the divine command ; still his inex- 
perience required instruction, and his youth demanded sup- 
port. Wherefore, rising from his bed, the venerable mo- 
narch assembled the princes of Israel, the state officers, 
and all the principal men of the empire, and made an elo- 
quent address, in which he told them of the ardent desire 
he had conceived " to build an house of rest for the Ark 
of the Covenant," but that he had been forbidden to take 
that honour to himself — and it now devolved upon Solo- 
mon, whom the Lord had chosen to succeed him in the 
kingdom — that he had nevertheless provided abundance of 
materials for the work, but that it was an arduous and 
magnificent undertaking ; and seeing that the Lord their 
God had subdued all their enemies, and blessed them with 
tranquillity on every hand, he commanded them to improve 
the time diligently, and with heart and hand to assist their 
young and inexperienced king in his pious labour. Then 
turning to his son, he beautifully exhorts him : "And thou, 
Solomon, my son, know thou the God of thy father^ and 
serve him with a perfect heart and a willing mind : for the 
Lord searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the ima- 
ginations of the thoughts : if thou seek him, he will be 
found of thee- — but if thou forsake him, he will cast thee 
off forever. Take heed now ; for the Lord hath chosen 
thee to build an house for the sanctuary : be strong, and 
do it." He then gave him a comprehensive description of 
the edifice, which he said had been communicated by the 
Spirit to him — delivered to him an immense quantity of 
silver and gold (of which, a sum exceeding seventy mil- 
lions of our dollars, was from his private purse), for the 
decorations of the house, and for a vast variety of utensils 
to be used in their ceremonious service ; and lastly, he in- 
structed him in the administration of the Temple worship, 
by the Levites, whom he divided into twenty-four courses, 
including priests, levites, singers, musicians and porters — 
to serve in rotation. Then blessing the people with thanks- 
giving and prayers, for them and their monarch, the grand 
audience concluded. The day following, a thousand bul- 
locks, a thousand rams, and a thousand sheep, were sacri* 



DEATH OF DAVID. 225 

ficed in burnt offerings, and king Solomon was gladly ac- 
cepted by all the people of Israel. 

Amongst the latest advice which David gave to his suc- 
cessor, we find him gratefully remembering the worthy 
Barzillai, and enjoining on Solomon to cherish and honour 
the sons of his father's benefactor : whilst he warned him 
that Shimei was a dangerous man — but inasmuch as his 
life had been guarantied by the promise of David — that 
promise must yet be respected ; but as Joab, who had slain 
Absalom, contrary to the command of the king, and most 
treacherously put to death two princes of Israel, " who 
w^ere better than himself," had obtained no such exemp- 
tion, he ought to suffer the punishment due to his aggra- 
vated crimes. 

Soon after these regulations were finished, David, the 
great king of Israel, " died in a good old age, full of days, 
riches and honour," says his historian — having obtained 
the high designation of " a man after God's own heart," 
and leaving, in a life of seventy years — forty of which he 
had reigned — a volume of instructions to posterity, both in 
his writings and his actions.* (B. C. 1015.) 

Catherine, The whole life of David is indeed interest- 
ing, but I am at a loss to know how he who was far from 
being perfect, could be called a " man after God's own 
heart." 

Mother, These words have abundantly provoked the 
derision of infidels, who choose to apply to them a mean- 
ing which some of their number at least, are aware, they 
were never intended to convey. They are analogous to 
those which I lately explained to you. " The Spirit of the 
Lord came upon him" — that is, enabled him to perform the 
duty required at the time. In like manner, it was the 
Heart or the Will of God, that a man should be invested 



*The history of David, to the death of Samuel, is believed to have 
been written by that eminent eye-witness of his actions. From that 
period it was probably continued by Gad or Nathan, both contempo- 
rary. The prophets, in the several ages of the Jewish church, cer- 
tainly wrote some annals of their own times : — from these, the canon 
of scripture was finally settled by Ezra and the Sanhedrim, or grand 
Jewish council. 



226 CHARACTER OF DAVID. 

with royal authority, from whom, in a lineal descent, the 
Messiah should come — -that in his reign, the whole country, 
" from the river of Egypt to the Euphrates," which had 
been promised to the posterity of Abraham, should be sub- 
dued ; and the civil and ecclesiastical government of the 
Israelites reduced to a regular and permanent form. Now, 
for all these purposes, David was qualified by his wisdom, 
his valour, and his eminent piety. His character is not 
without blemishes, and these are not extenuated by his an- 
nalist ; but his integrity, his meekness, his benevolence, 
and, above all, his activity in the cause of religion, and his 
faithful adherence to one God, in the midst of the most de- 
basing idolatry, into which the chiefs of his nation, both 
before and after him, unhappily fell, render him worthy of 
the sublime destiny to which he was called. His deep 
penitence and self-abasement for his sins — his disinterested 
loyalty to Saul, whose family he knew to be set aside in 
his favour ; and his moderation in prosperity — devoting the 
great riches he had acquired in his wars, to the service of 
the divine Giver— are the indubitable evidences of a noble 
disposition. His inimitable compositions are the transcript 
of a genius, deep, fervid and comprehensive — they are the 
genuine effusions of a pious soul, sometimes bowed down 
by the heavy stroke of affliction — sometimes transported 
with joyful gratitude for some communication of divine 
favour, some unexpected deliverance, or unmerited suc- 
cess. They are still applicable to the ever-varying cir- 
cumstances of our mutable state, and will ever remain the 
enjoyment and consolation of every saint whilst the world 
endures. 

Catherine, Yet the curses which he invokes on his 
enemies, are not like the breathings of a saint — how do 
you reconcile such expressions with the character of a 
pious man? 

Mother, As the whole life of David exhibits a mild and 
forgiving disposition, we are warranted in saying, that the 
expressions to which you allude are not imprecations on 
his enemies : But as he was a prophet — " the Spirit of the 
Lord," says he, " spake by me, and his word was in my 
tongue" — they may be understood as denunciations of 
God's wrath upon such men as he describes. 



BOOK OF PSALMS* 227 

Charles. I am glad to hear it. Your exposition is a 
relief to me — for I have often thought with pain of this 
vindictive trait in David's character — so very inconsistent 
with his general piety. Was he the author of all the 
Psalms ? 

Mother. Let your sister recite to us a versification she 
has attempted of the hundred and thirty-seventh psalm, 
and you will find your question answered. 

Catherine. 

PSALM 137. 

1. Far from the land that gave us birth, 
The captives of a heathen king ; 
Shall we give up one hour to mirth ? 
Shall v^e the songs of Zion sing ? 

2. Sing us a song — our masters say, 
While sad and silent we remain : 
Our weeping hearts reject the lay, 
Our tongues refuse the sacred strain. 

3. No — rather let our harps, unstrung, 
Our harps, unusM to mortal themes, 
Upon the willow boughs be hung, 
That droop o'er cruel Babel's streams \ 

4. O Canaan ! land of high behest ! 
The light of hope still beams on thee ! 
If I forget thy promis'd rest, 

Then let my right hand palsied be ! 

5. If I forget thy olive bowers, 

Thy vine-girt hills — thy daughters slain — 
Thy holy temple's prostrate towers — 
My tongue then ever dumb remain ! 

6. O Babylon ! who raz'd our walls, 
Who mock'd us in our days of woe ; 
Our ruin'd state for vengeance calls. 
And thou, in turn, shalt be laid low ! 

Mother. Here you see the bard is a captive in Baby- 
lon, while his native land was in ruins — and that land wa* 
Canaan. David never saw Babylon, nor was his country 
laid waste by a conqueror until ages after his death— con- 



228 BOOK OF PSALMS. 

sequently this ode is not his. The book of Psalms is the 
work of many hands, and was composed in different times 
and circumstances of the Jewish church, even ages apart. 
They illustrate the Jewish history. Some of these beauti- 
ful hymns are of a date as early as the days of Moses, of 
Deborah, and of Hannah, the mother of Samuel ; and 
some are as late as the Babylonian captivity. Some are 
the composition of Asaph, a distinguished Levite, and chief 
of the choir which David appointed, and organised for the 
public worship of the Temple; and many are anonymous. 
Something more than one-third are inscribed with the name 
of the royal prophet. These are evidently connected with 
the various events of his life, both adverse and prosperous. 
But the whole collection has received the title of the psalms 
of David, most probably because he set them to music, 
and directed their use in the temple service. In some an- 
cient manuscripts, it is called the Psalter, from the Psal- 
tery, one of the instruments which accompanied the 
singers. 

" The book of psalms presents every possible variety of 
Hebrew poetry. They may all indeed be termed poems 
of the lyric kind, that is, adapted to music, but with great 
variety in the style of composition. Thus some are sim- 
ply odes. An ode is a dignified sort of song, narrative of 
the facts, either of public history, or of private life, in a 
highly adorned and figurative style. But the figure in the 
psalms is that which is peculiar to the Hebrew language, 
in which the figure gives its meaning with as much per- 
spicuity as the plainest speech. Others, again, are ethic, 
or didactic, delivering grave maxims of life, or the precepts 
of religion, in solemn, but for the most part, simple strains. 
To this class we may refer the hundred and nineteenth, 
and the other alphabetical psalms, which are so called be- 
cause the initial letters of each line or stanza followed the 
order of the alphabet. Nearly one-seventh part of the 
psalms are elegiac, or pathetic compositions on mournful 
subjects. Some are enigmatic, delivering the doctrines 
of religion in enigmatic sentences contrived to strike 
the imagination forcibly, and yet easily to be understood; 
while a few may be referred to the class of Idyls, or short 



CONSPIRACY AGAINST SOLOMON. 229 

pastoral poems. But the greater part, according to bish- 
op Horsley, is a sort of dramatic ode, consisting of dia- 
logue between certain persons, sustaining certain charac- 
ters."-^' 

" Not only do they breathe through every part a divine 
spirit of eloquence, but they contain numberless illu.strioua 
prophecies, that were remarkably accomplisfied, ajid that 
are frequently appealed to by the evangelical writers.'* 
*' David, in the spirit of inspiration, uttered his oracles 
with the most lively and exact description. He expressed 
the whole scheme of man's redemption, the incarnation, 
the passion, the resurrection and ascension of the Son of 
God, rather as a witness than a prophet. "f In the earlier 
ages, we are told, the book of psalms was much m )r« the 
familiar companion of religious persons and a.nili'^s, than 
it is now ; they committed them to memory ; they sung 
them at their meals; " they enlivened their social h njrs, 
and softened the fatigues of business." Bur. the example 
of our Saviour and his apostles is the conclusive sanation 
for the singing of psalms in divine worship. Hence the 
Christian church has adopted the practice as a part of its 
worship, and " these sacred hymns are indeed admirably 
calculated for every purpose of devotion." 

Let us now return to our story, from which I have 
thought it proper to digress for a few moments, to give you 
some notion of the importance of the book of psalm> — f)r 
an ample exposition, you will read the wnr\s of those 
eminent writers, who have thought them vvorlhy of a sepa- 
rate commentary.:!: 

Scarcely had the good king David descended to the orjave 
of his fathers, when the factious movements of Adonijah 
forfeited the conditional protection which Solomon had en- 
gaged, and made it expedient to sacrifice his li e to the 
tranquillity of the kingdom ; as well as to depose Abiathar, 

* " Introduction to the critical study and knowkdg-e of the holy 
Scriptures;'* a very extensive and excellent work, by Thoaias llaxt* 
well Home, London. 

t Gray's Key to the Old Testament, &c 
X Horsley, Gray, Home, and otliers. 

20 



230 HIGH PLACE AT GfiB]e:ow. 

his confederate, from the priesthood, and banish him to his 
private estate in the city of Anathoth, whence you will 
remember he had escaped to David on the inhuman butch- 
ery of the priests by Saul. Joab, also in the conspiracy, 
hearincr of these decided measures, became alarmed for his 
own safety, and, conscious how often he had deserved the 
heaviest penalty of the law, betook himself to the horns 
of the altar for refuge. Resolving to avail himself of the 
sanctity of the place, and refusing to come forth at the 
command of the king, he was there put to death, that the 
guilt of his crimes, especially the murder of two innocent 
men, might be averted from the house of Solomon, and 
the nation of Israel. "^ Shimei, the noted rebel, was then 
called before the king, and commanded to build himself 
an house in Jerusalem, and confine himself to that city the 
remainder of his life — which should certainly be taken on 
the day that he shouU pass the brook Kidron. Benaiah, 
an officer of great conduct, a faithful servant of David, 
who had hitherto commanded the little army which had 
resorted to him in his exile, was promoted to the chief 
command in the place of Joab, and Zadok was made high- 
priest in the room of Abiathar. 

Every threatening cloud now dispersed, and the sunshine 
of harmony at home, and peace abroad, beaming auspi- 
ciously on the head of Solomon, no impediment stood in 
the way of commencing his great work. But before he 
began, we observe, he collected all the principal people of 
Israel, and went up to " the high place" at Gibeon, and 
offered a thousand burnt offerings. 

Charles, What do you mean by " the high place'* at 
Gibeon '? 



* No opportunity ought to be neglected in our degenerate day — Iiow- 
ever insignificant the monitor — when the most atrocious of all crimes, 
tliat of murder, not only escapes the notice of the laws, but is beheld 
without horror — defended by argument — and even dignified with tho 
name of honourable satisfaction — of reiterating the remark, that the 
Supreme lawgiver admitted of no satisfaction for the life of a muT' 
derer ; but allowed in his case, even the sacred altar to be violated, 
should he presumptuously seek refuge in that place. See Exod. xxi. 
14, and Numbers, xxxv, 30, 31 » 



Solomon's dream. 231 

Mother. All the heathen nations building their altars 
on elevated grounds, the Hebrews early fell into the same 
practice — hence the altars of both were often denominated 
" their high places." 

Catherine, This offering of Solomon brings other in- 
stances of similar irregularity to my recollection. If the 
altar before the ark was the only legal place of offering, 
how were they justified in sacrificing in Gibeon, or in any 
other place ? 

Mother, When David brought the ark to Jerusalem, he 
prepared a temporary habitation to receive it — the taber- 
nacle, with the altar, being left at Gibeon with Zadok, and 
other priests to attend the ministration, it was then lawful 
to sacrifice in both places. In other instances, where the 
law appears to you to have been violated, you will find a 
special command to have been given for offering in the 
specified place. Whilst the ark was at Shiloh, on several 
occasions the people were assembled at Mizpeh to " con- 
sult the Lord," which was to be done by the priest present- 
ing himself before the mercy-seat, with the Urim and the 
Thummim on his breast. At Mizpeh, the people might, 
perhaps, assemble more conveniently than at Shiloh, which, 
being in view from the former, the priest might readily 
communicate between them. Thus you see when the Scrip- 
tures are examined, they will not fail to remove every fan- 
cied objection. 

That the sacrifices of Solomon at Gibeon were accepted, 
is demonstrated by the extraordinary favour he received 
at that place. The Majesty of Heaven appeared before 
him in a dream, and asked what should be given to him. 
*' Give me," replied the modest prince, " wisdom and know- 
ledge, that I may go out and come in before this people, 
for thou hast made me king over a people, like the dust 
of the earth in multitude." " Because thou hast not 
asked riches or honour" — replied the celestial vision — 
*' nor the life of thine enemies, nor long life for thyself, 
behold — wisdom and knowledge is granted unto thee, and 
I will give thee riches, and wealth, and honour, such as 
none of the kings have had that have been before thee, 
neither shall there any after thee have the like. And if 



232 Solomon's wise decision. 

thou wilt walk in my ways, to keep my statutes and my 
commandments, as thy father David did walk, then I will 
lengihen thy days." 

The subsequent display of Solomon's transcendant 
powers, evinced the ratification of this promise of divine 
illnminati Dn. He was not much above twenty years of 
age at this time, yet the uncommon sagacity he displayed 
in the decision of a cause which came before him in the 
beginning of his reign, excited the admiration of the pub- 
lic, and laid the foundation of the title he acquired — that 
of the wisest of men ! 

Two women living in the same house, were the mothers 
of two infant boys of nearly the same age. They came 
before Solomon, one accusing the other in these terms : 
"This woman's child died in the night, because she over- 
laid it: and she arose at midnight, and took my son, while 
thine handmaid slept, and laid it in her bosom, and laid 
her dead child in my bosom — but when I had considered 
it in the morning, behold, it was not my son." This charge 
was denic^d by the guilty mother ; and each party refused 
to relinquish the living child. Solomon, well knowing 
that maternal feeling would at once decide the question, 
proposed to settle the claim by dividing the living child be- 
tween them — the impostor acquiesced ! but the mother, in 
an agony of horror, exclaimed, " O my Lord, give her 
the living child, and in nowise slay it !" " Give her the 
living child," said the wise king, pointing to the agitated 
mother, " and in nowise slay it" ; she is the mother thereof" 

Shimoi, the noled reviler of David, observed the terms of 
his pardon about three years ; at the end of that time, he 
pursued some rimaway servants to Gath, and returned 
aojain to Jerusalem, where he was immediately put to 
death ; having foolishly incurred the execution of a sen- 
tence, which he had himself sanctioned. 

King Solomon, now the undisputed monarch of his own 
power f^ul realm, and the master of tributary kings, made se- 
veral alliances with others, particularly the king of Egypt, 
whose daughter he married, and with Hiram, king of Tyre, 
the fric^nd of his father David, who supplied him with tim- 
ber and with skilful artizans for the building of the temple. 



SOLOMON S TEMPLE. 2^ 

The dominions of Solomon contained no such limber as 
the cedar and cypress of Lebanon. He therefore contracted 
with Hiram for trees to be hewn in the mountains, and 
floated by sea to Joppa,*' the nearest port to Jerusalem. 
More than one hundred and seventy thousand labourers, 
the subjects of the two kings, were employed in this im- 
mense work, all of whom were provisioned by Solomon. 
Another numerous party quarried, squared, and polished 
the stones for the walls, which were thus exquisitely 
finished, in obedience to a divine command, that no ham- 
mer or tool of iron should be heard in the erection of the 
buildino^. 

All things being prepared, the foundation of the temple 
was laid in the fourth year of the reign of Solomon, and 
the four hundred and eighth year after the exodus from 
Egypt. 

Charles, Was it placed in the city of Jerusalem ? 

Mother, It was within the city on that consecrated 
eminence, where the patriarch Abram had prepared to offer 
up his son Isaac, eight hundred years before. It was 
called indifferently Mount Moriah, or Mount Zion. 

In seven years, the temple of Solomon was finished, 
and stood an edifice of stupendous magnificence. The 
tabernacle of the sanctuary was the model of its construc- 
tion. It was superbly adorned with precious stones, with 
sculptured wood, and silver and gold. The immense 
weight of the latter, which is said to have been expended 
on every part of the house, is almost incredible. With 
its lofty porticoes, its courts, and its offices for the accom- 
modation of the worshippers, the Levites, the guards, and 
other inferior officers, it covered half a mile in circum- 
ference, f 

When this wonderful assemblage of beauty and splen- 
dour was completed, the solemn dedication of it followed, 

* Now called Jaffa. 

t The Levites, in number thirty-eight thousand, were divided into 
twenty-four classes, each class serving a week in rotation ; whilst 
they were upon duty, they were lodged in the temple. For a partica- 
kr description of the temple, see Prideaux's Connexion of the Old 
and New Testaments, vol. i. book 3. 
20* 



234 DEDICATION OF THE TEMPLE. 

and perhaps the human eye never beheld a grander spec- 
tacle. In the midst of a multitude of people, besides the 
princes, the elders, and the chiefs of all Israel, the priests 
brought in the ark of the covenant, and deposited it in the 
Holy of Holie\s, whilst the Levites, arrayed in white linen 
garments, stood beside the altar, and one hundred and 
twenty priests sounded their trumpets in unison with a 
full chorus of cymbals, of psalteries, of harps, and vocal 
performers, singing praises and thanksgivings to the Lord. 
*' Fmc he is good — for his mercy endureth forever." At 
this impressive moment, the bright cloud descended to the 
mercy-seat, and filled the court with such resplendent 
light that the priests were compelled to retire. Yet, the 
grand exhibition was not finished ; the pious prince him- 
self now ascended a brazen scaffold, which he had order- 
ed lor this purpose, and, spreading forth his hands ta 
heaven, whilst he knelt in the midst of his people, he 
poured out the devotion and gratitude of his soul — be- 
seeching the Omnipotent to accept the offering he was 
making, aiid answer the supplication which should ascend 
from the holy walls of his dwelling. There cannot be a 
nobler p'iece of composition than this fine dedicatory 
prayer ol Solomon. 

V\ hen he ceased speaking, fire descended from heaven 
on the altar where the sacrifices had been previously pre- 
pared,, as it had done when the first offerings were made 
in the sanctuary, and the splendour of divine glory illu- 
minated the whole temple I The astonished people, over- 
powered by awe, prostrated themselves on the earth, 
repen iUjiy in deep reverence, " for he is good, for his mer- 
cy endureth forever!" 

Another demonstration of divine favour was bestowed 
upon the king of Israel. When the sacrifices and feasts 
of the dedication, which lasted fourteen days, and seem to 
li.ive been attended by a great proportion of the whole na- 
tion, were eoncluded — the God of Abraham again appear- 
ed by nii^ht, to him, and graciously declared his acceptance 
of the prayers that should arise from the dwelhng he had 
chosen ; that even in the days of calamity, w^hich the sins 
of h\< people iTiight thereafter bring upon this land, their 



Solomon's glory. 235 

penitent supplications from that hallowed place should turn 
away his just wrath, and procure them relief! 

This whole account of the building and dedication of the 
temple is remarkably beautiful, and perhaps the eloquence 
of Solomon's prayer is not surpassed by any portion of 
scripture. A young monarch, surrounded by all the mag- 
nificence of the East, and by hundreds and thousands of 
his admiring subjects, himself assuming the office of the 
priest, kneeling in humble adoration before the Majesty of 
heaven, is a most interesting spectacle, and peculiarly 
fitted to make us feel the insis^nificance of man I Nor can 
1 omit the opportunity it offers, particularly to remark the 
prophetic sentence which concludes the gracious answer it 
obtained, because its wonderful fulfilment, even to the very 
letter, is an everlasting testimony to the truth of the nar- 
rative. " But if," said the Lord, " ye turn away, and for- 
sake my commandments which I have set before you, and 
shall go and serve other gods, then will I pluck them up 
by the roots out of my land which I have given them : 
and this house, which I have sanctified for my name, will I 
cast out of my sight, and will make it to he a proverb and 
a b y-tv or d among all nations. And this house, which is 
high, shall be an astonishment to every one that passeth 
by it, so that he shall say, ' why hath the Lord done 
thus V and it shall be answered, ' Because they forsook 
the Lord God of their fathers, which brought them forth 
out of the land of Egypt, and laid hold on other gods and 
worshipped them, therefore hath he brought all this evil 
upon them !' " 

Fanny, Solomon himself, at least, it might be hoped, 
would scarcely apostatize in the face of this awful warn- 
ing- 

Mother, Indeed, my dear, it is humiliating to human 
nature to confess that he did — his whole reign was the 
reign of peace and prosperity — and prosperity corrupted 
his excellent heart I Respected, feared, and caressed by 
his sul)jects. his allies, and his neighbours, he became 
powerful beyond all other potentates upon earth. Jerusa- 
lem was adorned with stately palaces for himself, and for 
his queen ; his throne was of ivory and pure gold, and all 



236 aUEEN SHEBA* 

the furniture of his table was of gold. In his armoury 
were two hundred targets, and three hundred shields of 
beaten gold. Presents of immense value poured in from 
the neighbouring kings, and his merchant ships, from Ophir 
and other places, supplied him with all the spices of Arabia, 
and the wealth of the East. Not distracted, like his father, 
by wars, he had leisure to strengthen his empire. Going 
in person to Elath and Ezion-geber, now called Berenice, 
he fortified those ports, and built a navy ; by which judi- 
cious measures, the trade from the Red Sea became so 
profitable, that the abundance of gold in Jerusalem, re- 
duced the comparative value of silver to little account in 
his glorious days. The queen of Sheba came herself with 
a great train, not only to bring him presents of precious 
metals, and to do homage to the celebrated Solomon, but 
to behold the magnificence, and to listen to the wisdom that 
were now blazoned through the world. " Happy," cried 
she, when she had seen all these things, and felt herself 
humbled in his presence — " Happy are thy servants who 
stand continually before thee. It was a true report which 
I heard in mine own land, yet I believed not the words : 
behold, the half was not told me ; thy wisdom and pros- 
perity exceed the fame which I heard !" 

Fanny. Where was Sheba, the country of this queen ? 

Mother, I cannot tell you with certainty. As she is 
said to come from " the South" — she may have reigned in 
Abyssinia or Arabia — these being the most southerly then 
known. Both these countries contained, or might easily 
have procured the spices, gold, and precious stones, she is 
said to have presented to Solomon. 

Solomon was, during the greater part of his reign, a 
righteous king, and a strict observer of the laws and sta- 
tutes of Moses. But, towards the close of his life, per- 
verted by his alliances with the heathens, he married their 
daughters, and became the victim of their arts. For them 
he dishonoured his high character, by erecting altars to 
their deities, and burning incense in their temples* 

These flagrant defections could not go unnoticed in a 
nation the peculiar care of the Deity ; whose extraordi- 
nary providence was ever perceived in sensible manifesta- 



TEN TRIBES GIVEN TO JEXIOBOAM. 237 

tions of his approbation of their national virtue, and visi- 
ble punishment of their apostacy. Accordingly the old 
enemies of Israel, the Edomites, and the Syrians, became 
troublesome in the latter years of Solomon. But, in his 
own house, the most formidable enemy arose in Jeroboam, 
a man of considerable note amongst his subjects, whose 
conspicuous abilities had obtained him a post of honour 
under the government. 

A prophet, named Abijah, who is now first mentioned, 
was privately sent to Jeroboam, to inform him, in the sym- 
bolical manner of the ancients, by rending his mantle into 
twelve pieces, and putting ten into the hand of the latter, 
that thus should the kingdom be rent for the sin of Solo- 
mon ; ten parts should be given to Jeroboam, whilst two 
should remain with the house of Solomon, for the sake of 
Jerusalem, the seat of the temple, and for the sake of 
David his father. By what means this sentence was re- 
vealed to the king we are not informed, but his menacing 
aspect, from that time, towards Jeroboam, obliged him to 
retire into Egypt, where he remained during Solomon's 
life, which terminated in the fifty-eighth year of his age, 
and the fortieth of his reign. 

Catherine, Who now shall hope to persevere in virtue, 
if a prince so indulged with every worldly gratification, 
and so highly endowed with intellectual accomplishments, 
did not " retain his integrity ?" 

Mother. Yet, let us not be discouraged, but rather profit 
by the result of his experience, and follow his own beauti- 
ful precept : " In the morning sow thy seed, and in the 
evening withhold not thy hand, for thou knowest not 
whether shall prosper, either this or that, or whether both 
shall be alike good.'' And there is reason to believe that 
the ciber rations of this illustrious prince, though great, 
were but transient, for his book of Ecclesiastes, emphati- 
cally styled " The Preacher," written in the latter part of 
his life, contains the abundant confession, that the pomp 
and the pleasures he had pursued^ were but vanity ! The 
better part of his life was spent in study, as he tells us, 
" concerning all things that are done under heaven," and 
he has left us, on record, the transcript of a mind exer* 



238 CHARACTER OF SOLOMON. 

cised in the contemplation of man, in all his various rela- 
tions and circumstances. His " Proverbs," a part of 
which only has reached us, are the inexhaustible mine 
whence the boasted philosophy of the world has derived 
all its wealth. His temple and his palaces are crumbled 
into dust, and Jerusalem has fulfilled the prophecy, and 
become the by-word of the traveller ; but his transcendent 
wisdom has erected an edifice which shall endure until 
earthly palaces are no more ! 

Catherine, His book called Solomon's Song, is not so 
happy. Indeed, I do not pretend to discover its use. 

Mother, h is believed to be a prophetic allusion to the 
union of Christ and his Church. It is altogether in the 
metaphorical style of the East, and, therefore, not under- 
stood by common readers. Yet much of its imagery is 
elegant, and obvious ; though not so instructive as the 
plainer parts of Scripture. 

On the death of Solomon, the people of Israel, with one 
accord, set the crown on the head of his son Rehoboam. 
(B. C. 975.) But, notwithstanding the flourishing state of 
the kingdom in the late brilliant reign, discontents had 
arisen, which the accession of a new king seemed to pre- 
sent a favourable opportunity of removing. Jeroboam, 
who still resided in Egypt, was accordingly invited to re- 
turn, and contribute his talents to the meditated plan of 
reform. Headed by this formidable rival, their complaints 
soon reached the throne, and three days were required by 
the prince to consider their petition. The old counsellors 
of his father were now consulted, and readily gave their 
opinion, that his own interest would be promoted by com- 
pliance. But the inclinations of the king were opposed to 
the sage experience of years, and younger statesmen were 
called in to confirm them. Directed only by the pride of 
newly acquired power, these tyros in the science of gov- 
ernment saw no way so likely to secure the obedience of 
the people, as that of increasing, instead of diminishing 
their taxes. This then was the measure adopted ; and the 
ungracious answer, " my hand shall be heavier than my 
father's," produced an immediate revolt. Jeroboam, and 
the malcontents, without further deliberation, raised the 



REVOLT OP THE TEN TRIBES. 239 

standard of rebellion, proclaiming aloud, in the words of 
the insurgent Sheba, " What portion have we in David ? — 
neither have we inheritance in the son of Jesse ; — to your 
tents, O Israel ! — now see to thine own house, David !" 

The two tribes of Benjamin and Judah, alone, adhered 
to their lawful monarch, whilst all the other ten united 
against them, and declared Jeroboam their sovereign. 
Thus were the Israelites divided into two separate states, 
and, thenceforth, denominated — the kingdom of Israel, and 
the kingdom of Judah. 

Fanny, Then the rending of the prophet's garment, was 
already realized, and by means the most perfectly natural 
in the common course of affairs? 

Mother. The affairs of the Israelites were generally 
conducted in that manner, although an extraordinary provi- 
dence still directed them, nor had miracles yet ceased. 

Charles, Did Rehoboam submit to the loss of his sub- 
jects without an effort to recover them ? 

Mother, No. He assembled an army of an hundred and 
eighty thousand men to reduce the revolted tribes ; but he 
relinquished the pursuit at the command of a prophet, who 
was sent to forbid his opposition to the execution of the 
divine decree. 

Less attentive was Jeroboam to the will of the Most 
High. Notwithstanding he had been told that the ien 
tribes were taken from Solomon, because of his defection 
from the worship of one only God^ and that they should 
remain with the house to which they were transferred only 
so long as it continued faithful to the constitution ; yet 
diffident of a title so substantial, and choosing rather to 
confide in his own devices, he fell into the very sin, for 
which the kingdom had been divided. 

Although the ten tribes had revolted from the bouse of 
David, it was not their intention to depart from the religion 
of their fathers. Jerusalem was the place where alone its 
holy mysteries might be celebrated, and thither the sub- 
jects of Jeroboam must repair three times in every year : 
this necessity was full of danger to the new king. The 
glories of the holy city might revive the affections of his 
people for the pious founders of the temple ; and the union 



240 Jeroboam's idols. 

with their brethren at the solemn feasts, might excite some 
regret for their rash separation. To prevent these serious 
consequences, after having repaired Shechem, the city 
which Abimelech had destroyed in the days of Gideon, 
and fixed his court at Tirzah, near to Shechem, Jeroboam 
set up two golden calves, the one at Bethel, and the other 
at Dan, the two extremities of his kingdom, and proclaim- 
ed them *' the gods of Israel which brought them out of 
Egypt !" Altars were erected for their service — priests 
from the lowest orders of the people were appointed, in- 
stead of the consecrated Levites — who had all perhaps left 
his territories and gone down into Judah — and sacred 
festivals were ordained, at seasons differing from those 
selected by the Mosaic Law. 

Fanny. I suppose they derived their propensity to wor- 
ship a calf from the Egyptians, who stupidly worshipped 
an ox. 

Mother, No doubt it was so, since we find the first 
Idol, which their ancestors erected when they came out of 
Egypt, was in that form. They were then punished by a 
miracle, and now another reproved their impiety, and was 
accompanied by one of the most remarkable prophecies 
recorded in sacred writ (B. C. 975), Whilst Jeroboam 
sacrilegiously burnt incense on the altar at Bethel, a pro- 
phet from Judah appeared before him, and, in the^e awful 
words, denounced the vengeance of the olfended Deity : "O 
altar, altar, thus saith the Lord : Behold, a child shall be 
born unto the house of David, Josiah by name, and upon 
thee shall he offer the priests of the high places that burn 
incense upon thee, and men's bones shall be burnt upon 
thee. And this is the sign which the J_iOrd hath spoken : 
Behold, the altar shall be rent, and the ashes that are upon 
it shall be poured out." The insolent monarch, now lost 
in the maze of his destructive ambition, instantly put forth 
his own hand to seize the bold monitor — when, to the as- 
tonishment of the spectators, it was palsied in the attempt 
— and, at the same moment, the altar, dividing in the 
midst, " the ashes were poured out." 

The power and veracity of Jehovah were now acknow- 
ledged, and his messenger implored to intercede for the 



ASA DESTROYS THE IDOLSi 241 

restoration of the king's band — but, altbougb tbe mercy- 
was accorded, Jereboam neitber repented of bis sin, nor 
returned to bis duty. He evidently knew better tban to 
put any confidence in bis graven images, or bis unballow- 
ed priestbood ; for wben a favourite cbild soon afterwards 
fell sick, and be required consolation, be sent bis wife in 
disguise -to Sbilob to consult Abijab, tbe propbet, wbo 
being previously informed of tbe quality of bis visitor, 
Was commanded to take tbis opportunity of informing tbe 
reprobate king, not only tbat bis cbild would die of tbis 
sickness, but tbat be alone, of all bis bouse, sbouid die a 
natural deatb — " because some good was found in bim ;" 
but for tbe ingratitude of Jeroboam, and tbe wickedness of 
his family, they should be cut off, every soul, by violent 
hands ! 

As for tbe king of Judab, altbougb he seemed to show 
a good disposition, by acquiescing in the determination of 
tbe Supreme Governor of Israel, to deprive bim of a large 
proportion of bis dominions, yet his allegiance continued 
but three years, after which, during a reign of seventeen, 
the worship of images prevailed throughout Judab. 

These monstrous transgressions were visited by an in- 
vasion from Shishak, king of Egypt, wbo came with an 
immense army, took several of the strong cities of Judab, 
and plundered both the palace and the temple of Jerusa- 
lem of the splendid furniture with which Solomon bad en- 
ricbed them. Further punishment was suspended, on their 
repentance, but they became tributary to Egypt. _Abijab5 
the son of Reboboam, having a martial disposition, made 
a spirited effort, in his short reign of three years, to bring 
back tbe Israelites ta tbe bouse of David, and although 
disappointed in bis ultimate design, some of their best cities 
were reduced, and five hundred thousand of their chosen 
troops fell in battle. Asa, bis successor, pursued a more 
promising way to the welfare of tbe state, by forbidding 
tbe abominable rites of the heathens to be seen in any part 
of his dominions, and resolutely destroying every symbol 
of their superstitions : not even sparing bis own mother, 
wbo refused to concur in the pious work ; but cutting her 
idol in pieces, with more tban common marks of indigna- 
21 



242 jehoshaphat's good reign. 

tion, he deposed her from the royal station she held, that 
none of inferior note might hope to disobey with impunity. 

Fanny. Do you think, mother, that a king is to be 
commended for punishing his own parent ? 

Mother. A king of Israel had no power to indulge in, 
or to pardon disobedience to the laws of Moses, in any 
individual. The sacred record does not condemn his con- 
duct to his mother. It says, " Asa did that which was 
good and right in the eyes of the Lord his God." But this 
is not to be understood of all his actions throughout a 
reign of forty-one years ; for, in the latter part of it, he 
neglected his duty and oppressed his subjects. Perhaps, 
his mind had become feeble : he was old, and a very se- 
vere distemper had afflicted the three last years of his 
life. Asa is said to have been " laid in his sepulchre with 
sweet odours, and divers kind of spices," and a " great 
burning" to have been made " for him." Whether em- 
balming, in the manner of the Egyptians, is here meant, 
we cannot say ; it is more probable that these " odours" 
were used to relieve the attendants on his funeral, from 
the offensive smell which disease had given to the body : 
because we do not read that the Israelites embalmed the 
bodies of their most eminent kings, in any instance, unless 
this be one. 

Jehoshaphat, the son of Asa, had the wisdom to take the 
most effectual measures to confirm the reformation his 
father had commenced — that of removing the ignorance 
of the people. So early as the third year of his reign, and 
while he was busily engaged in repairing and garrisoning 
his cities — he sent out missionaries with the book of the 
law in their hand, to instruct the Israelites in the know- 
ledge of their duty. Nor did he rest here, but went him- 
self throughout Judah, exhorting the judges, by every 
honourable and religious consideration, to be firm in the 
impartial administration of justice. His kingdom, of 
course, was highly prosperous, during his whole reign. 
The adjacent nations feared him, and brought their pre- 
sents and their tribute, so that he became exceedingly rich. 
Yet he too erred : for he united with the degenerate king 
of Israel, in building a navy at Ezion-geber to trade to 



REVOLUTIONS IN ISRAEL. 243 

the wealthy ports of Tarshish and Ophir for gold, — this 
fault was punished by the destruction of all the ships in a 
storm. 

The history of the Israelites from the revolt of Jerobo- 
am, is a record of alternate crime and calamity. Though 
repulsive, it is full of instruction, because it marks the 
steps by which they travelled to their own destruction. 
Continually embroiled with their neighbours, and with the 
sister state of Judah, the story is somewhat intricate ; I 
shall not, therefore, be very particular in the detail, but 
endeavour to lead you through the most prominent and in- 
teresting events, to the natural result of their apostacy — 
the fulfilment of the prophecies against them. 

The royal line of Israel, as contra-distinguished from 
that of Judah, did not produce one righteous prince ; each 
plunged more deeply than his predecessor in vices the 
most inveterate ! 

Catherine. In such a state of things, were they not 
wholly abandoned by the great Supreme, whom they thus 
ungratefully deserted ? 

Mother, Though God is just, my dear, he is long-suf- 
fering. He bore long with his apostate children before he 
cast them off — visiting them with threatening and exhorta- 
tion by his prophets, and deferring their final sentence 
whilst there appeared the smallest prospect of their return ; 
for there were yet faithful individuals in the reprobate 
land ; and for their sake occasional mercies were bestowed. 
The celebrated prophets Elijah, and Elisha, were com- 
missioned to this division of Israel, and performed their 
miracles amongst them ! 

Nadab, the son of Jeroboam, succeeded his father in 
the throne of Israel, and following his evil example, was 
slain by Baasha, a man of Issachar, who put the crown on 
his own head, and afterwards fulfilled the judgment that 
had been pronounced against the house of Jeroboam, by 
putting them to death ! 

These atrocities, however, did not secure the succession 
to his own family ; for his wickedness was so offensive to 
heaven, that a sentence of extermination, complete as had 
been that of Jeroboam, was passed upon him. His son 



244 THE PROPHET ELIJAH. 

Elah was slain whilst he was revelling in his palace at 
Tirzah, by Zimri, a *' captain of his chariots," and the 
whole house of Baasha was destroyed. When the news 
of Zimri's having cut off the royal house, and seated him- 
self on the throne, reached the army, which at that time 
was besieging the Philistines in Gibbethon, they proclaim- 
ed Omri, one of their officers, king ; and marched directly 
to attack the usurper in the capital. Zimri, finding his 
opponent too powerful, threw himself into the palace, and 
setting it on fire, there ended his short reign of seven 
days ! The people, notwithstanding his death, divided in 
favour of the two pretending families ; Omri's party pre- 
vailed ; he himself reigned twelve years, and left the crown 
to his son Ahab, the most abandoned prince who had yet 
possessed it. Ahab's wife was the daughter of the king 
of Sidon, a woman remarkably insolent and cruel, by 
whose means, idolatry was extended to a degree beyond 
any former example. 

In this melancholy state of Israel, the celebrated prophet 
Elijah, an inhabitant of Gilead, was commissioned to go 
to the wicked Ahab, and tell him, that neither rain nor 
dew should descend upon his dominions for three years, and 
that the inhabitants should be grievously afflicted by 
famine. To establish his own confidence in the divine 
origin of his mission, the prophet was directed to repair 
to the brook Cherith, which falls into the Jordan, where 
he should be fed miraculously by ravens I In this retire- 
ment he remained, receiving daily the promised sustenta- 
tion, until, for want of rain, the brook was dried up. 
Another message then directed him to go to Zarephath, a 
city of Sidon, where a widow woman was prepared to en- 
tertain him. At the gate of Zarephath, Elijah found the 
poor widow he was seeking, collecting a few sticks to 
dress her last handful of meal ! 

Catherine. You seem to intimate that the Sidonians felt 
the effects of a famine, which was sent lo punish Ahab ; 
but they were not his subjects. 

Mother, As it very naturally happens in the common 
course of events, that the innocent must suffer from the 
vices of their immoral associates, the Sidonians might have 



ahab's wicked reign. 245 

been injured by the famine inflicted on a country adjacent, 
and with which they had much intercourse, had they them- 
selves been a virtuous people ; but it was far otherwise 
with Sidon.^ Having a fine port on the Mediterranean, 
she had become wealthy by a flourishing trade with many 
nations ; and vice, too frequently the offspring of excessive 
affluence, had contaminated every fibre of her body. Ahab 
had married the king's daughter, and, at her instigation, 
altars were erected in Samaria, to Baal, the god of the Si- 
donians, and a multitude of priests were maintained for 
the ministration of his profane rites. Thus obnoxious to 
divine wrath, for the guilt of their own sins, and their ex- 
ample and influence in corrupting Israel, we need not won- 
der that they should share in the distress of that unhappy 
country. And how severely it was felt, we may imagine 
from the answer of the widow of Zarephath to Elijah, 
when he applied to her for a little water and a morsel of 
bread : " As the Lord liveth," said she, " I have but an 
handful of meal in a barrel, and a little oil in a cruse, and, 
behold, I am gathering two sticks, that I may go in and 
dress it for me and my son, that we may eat it and die !" 
But how was her despair converted into joy, when he di- 
rected her "to go first and prepare him a cake, and after 
that, make some for herself and son ; for the barrel and 
the cruse should not fail until the Lord should send rain 
upon the earth !" Trusting in the gracious promise, she 
did as she was commanded, and received the reward of 
her faith, in a continued supply for herself — for her son — 
and for the prophet. A yet more affecting instance of di- 
vine favour confirmed her confidence in the God of Israel : 
— this son, her only child, fell sick and died, and was re- 
stored to the sorrowing mother on the prayer of Elijah. 

Meanwhile, the famine raged with desolating sweep 
throughout the land of Ahab, and yet no symptom of peni- 
tence had invoked the mercy of the righteous Judge. The 
violent temper of the queen, on the contrary, exasperated 
into madness, and determined to reach Elijah, the innocent 

* So called from Sidon, the grand-son of Ham, from whom de- 
scended the Canaanites. 
21* 



246 OBADIAH PROTECTS THE PROPHETS. 

predicter of the calamity, directed her servants to destroy 
all the prophets in Israel. But, happily for them, Obadiah, 
the governor of the royal household, was amongst a few 
who, in the worst of times, remained untainted by the pre- 
vailing corruptions, — and he contrived to preserve the lives 
of many, by concealing them in caves, and secretly sus- 
taining them with bread and water. 

Fanny, Your words, mother, would imply a consider- 
able number of these inspired messengers ; but I do not 
remember to have read of many at any one period. 

Mother. The term, here and in other places of Scrip- 
ture, is to be understood of the disciples of the more emi- 
nent prophets ; or, the pupils of those seminaries that were 
founded by Samuel. They appear to have lived together 
in societies, retired in some measure from the world, not 
wholly exempted from labour, but chiefly devoting them- 
selves to the study of the sacred books, and the instruction 
of the public. By exterminating the whole body, the queen 
would not only be revenged on the principal object of her 
malice, but would remove an impediment to the universal 
adoption of her vile religion. A well educated and active 
ministry must ever be a powerful restraint upon vice. 

Elijah, however, eluded the search of Jezebel, and, at 
the conclusion of the appointed three years, was directed 
to show himself openly to the king — to foretel an approach- 
ing rain, and, by working a miracle in his presence, and 
ia the presence of the people, to convince them of the fal- 
lacy of their lying oracles, for whom they had abandoned 
the God of their fathers. 

Three years, without fresh . supplies, had emptied the 
granaries of Samaria, which was the capital of the ten 
tribes ; and a drought, uninterrupted even by the moisture 
of a scanty dew, had burnt up every herb, and dried every 
fountain of the exhausted earth, when Ahab began to trem- 
ble at the frightful sentence that seemed to have gone out 
against every living creature. Instead of being humbled 
before the just Avenger, he rather followed the presumptu- 
ous suggestion of expiring hope, that the lives of his cat- 
tle might yet be redeemed by the discovery of grass and 
water, in some favoured spot, and in search of these se« 



baal's prophets. 247 

questered treasures he would explore his dominions. Taking 
one section to himself, he despatched Obadiah into another ; 
but not far had the latter proceeded, when he was met by 
the prophet, who told him to go back, and tell his master 
where Elijah might be found. This step, in the eyes of 
the pious governor, was no less than transferring to him- 
self the fate denounced upon Elijah. The omnipotence of 
Jehovah would interpose for the preservation of his faith- 
ful servant — whilst he should himself be sacrificed to the 
disappointment of Ahab ! But Elijah assuring him that he 
would follow him to the presence of the king, Obadiah 
consented to return, and the prophet, in a short time, was 
brought to his defence against the charge of having occa- 
sioned all the calamity of his country. Confident of the 
event, he boldly denied the reproach, and challenged the 
king to gather all his wicked counsellors, the ministers of 
his false gods, and he should see who had brought upon 
him and his people the chastisement they had suffered. 
The heroic offer to oppose himself singly to the host of 
Baalim's priests, was not to be refused. On Mount Car- 
mel, therefore, four hundred retainers of Jezebel's court, 
and four hundred and fifty of a meaner class of priest'^, 
were collected to try the efficacy of their incantations 
against the inspired messenger of heaven. Each party- 
having prepared his sacrificial victim for the great experi- 
ment, Elijah called upon the people to arouse from their 
o-uilty indecision, and enlist under the banner of him who 
should prevail. " If the Lord be God," said he, " follow 
him— but if Baal, then follow him." Elijah then waited 
patiently from morning to noon, whilst the profligate min- 
isters of Baal cried aloud to their patron, gashing them- 
selves all the while, after their savage manner, till they 
were covered with blood ; but Baal was not to be concili- 
ated. " Call aloud," said Elijah, with cutting irony, his 
pious indignation now excited by their horrible supersti- 
tions, " for he is a god ; either he is talking, or he is pur- 
suing — or he is on a journey — or, peradventure, he sleep- 
eth, and must be awakened." Vainly, however, were their 
impious invocations continued till the time of the evening 
sacrifice. At that hallowed hour, the divinely-commis- 



248 ELIJAH SLAYS BAAL's PROPHETS. 

sioned agent, turning to the assembled people, invited their 
attention, whilst, with twelve stones, to represent the twelve 
tribes of Israel, he rebuilt an altar, which, in better days, 
had stood on Carmel, and made a deep trench around it. 
Then laying his sacrifice on the consecrated pile, he bade 
them to drench it with water until the trench should be 
filled, and malice herself should find no room to accuse 
him of concealing one particle of fire in any crevice of the 
structure. AH this being finished, he called upon the Lord 
God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Israel, to testify, that 
He had commanded the things which His servant was now 
doing in his name. But he called not on a god who was to 
be idly importuned the whole length of a day. Fire, in- 
stantly falling from heaven, and consuming the sacrifice, 
the altar, and every thing adjacent, extorted the unwilling 
confession from the whole assembly, who, falling on their 
faces, repeated, " The Lord, he is the God ! — the Lord, he 
is the God /" Here was an argument not to be eluded by 
any artifice of the impostors ; the people were convinced, 
and they promptly obeyed the command of Elijah, to seize 
them every one, and inflict the death their mischievous 
practices had merited. 

When this severe expiation was concluded, a small cloud, 
almost imperceptible, arising from the sea, Elijah sent his 
servant to hasten the king from Mount Carmel, lest he 
should be overtaken by the rain, and encourage him to go 
home and eat and drink without fear, for abundance should 
again bless the land. Immediately the firmament black- 
ened with heavy clouds — the wind blew, and torrents of 
rain confirmed the word of the prophet. 

Fanny, Jezebel herself certainly could not escape the 
conviction which this seasonable miracle was calculated to 
produce. 

Mother. Alas, my dear ! the Scriptures afford many in- 
stances of the inefficacy even of miracles to impress the 
heart that has been hardened by a false religion. The 
death of her ministers only provoked the vile princess to 
inform their executioner, that he should not behold the set- 
ting sun of another day. Well acquainted with her atro- 
cious character, he thought it prudent to retire to the wil- 



ELIJAH MIRACULOUSLY PRESERVED. 249 

derness of Beer-sheba in Judah, where, throwing himself 
down at the foot of a juniper tree, he prayed to be delivered 
by death, from her unrelenting persecution. But his de- 
jected spirit was revived by an angel, who brought him 
provisions, and commanded him to proceed to Mount Ho- 
reb. The journey might perhaps have been performed in 
four or five days, but Elijah was forty days on the way, 
without further sustenance. Whilst he reposed in one of 
the caves of this eminence, already consecrated by the 
most stupendous scene that ever met a mortal eye — the 
same terrible emblems of Omnipotence which had aston- 
ished the children of Israel when they came out of Egypt, 
again announced the presence of the Almighty. Tem- 
pestuous winds swept the face of Mount Horeb — the earth 
trembled — and fires, bursting from the cleft rocks, preceded 
" a still small voice" reanimating the fainting prophet in 
his arduous work, by the assurance, that there were still 
seven thousand left in Israel who had not bowed the knee 
to Baal — for whose sake, and for the sake of their faithful 
ancestors, Israel was to be spared yet a little longer time. 
The end of his conflict, however, approaching, he was 
commanded to anoint Elisha, the son of Shaphat, to be his 
successor in the prophetical office — and also to anoint Ha- 
zael to be king over Syria, and Jehu to be king over Is- 
rael, who would, between them, cut off the house of wicked 
Ahab, and chastise Israel for their sins. Neither miracles 
nor mercies had yet affected the king of Israel any more 
than his abandoned queen ; yet, mercies were not with- 
held ; for the Syrians, not long after, with thirty-two con- 
federate kings and an immense army, besieging his capital 
— and insulting not only the monarch, but the Almighty 
Protector of his country, were defeated by a little band of 
Israelites, with the loss of a hundred thousand men. Not- 
withstanding this evident mark of the displeasure of Hea- 
ven at the blasphemy of Benhadad the king of Syria, the 
pusillanimous Ahab made peace with him on his promise 
to restore certain cities which had been taken from Israel 
by his father. 

Charles. Was it not right to make peace with Ben- 
hadad, who had been beaten, and had submitted ? 



250 MURDER OF NABOTH. 

Mother, It is right for us, in our circumstances, when 
all nations, morally considered, are equal, to treat the con- 
quered with lenity : but that it was not so for Ahab, is evi- 
dent, by a message of disapprobation delivered to him by 
"a man of God," whose name is not mentioned. 

But the measure of his iniquity was not yet full. One 
of his subjects, named Naboth, possessed a beautiful vine- 
yard, which the king offered to purchase, because it was 
contiguous to his palace at Jezreel. The alienation of a 
patrimonial inheritance was forbidden by law; Naboth, 
therefore, ventured to affront the king by a conscientious 
refusal. TAe vexation of Ahab, though very great, might 
have subsided ; but the proud spirit of his wife would brook 
no opposition. Resolving, at all events, to obtain the co- 
veted vineyard, she immediately wrote, in the king's name, 
to the elders of Jezreel, the city of Naboth, to suborn wit- 
nesses and accuse him of the capital offence of having 
blasphemed God and the king. Idolatry, the fruitful pa- 
rent of every vice, had infected the whole land with de- 
pravity. The judges were not ashamed to sanction the in- 
justice and rapacity of the king — but condemned Naboth 
to be stoned to death ; and that no obstacle might arise to 
interrupt this lawless seizure of his property, the sons of 
Naboth shared the fate of their innocent father, and Ahab 
took possession : not, however, without the final condemna- 
tion of a higher authority than his own corrupt court. 
Hardened as he was, the appearance of Elijah on the way 
to Jezreel, as he hastened to seize his ill-gotten wealth, dis- 
mayed him. 

The recollection of his crimes, rapine, murder, and all 
manner of impiety, struck deep into his terrified soul, whilst 
the prophet denounced the extirpation of his race, his own 
awful fate, and that of his barbarous wife. Dogs, he told 
the king, should eat Jezebel by the walls of Jezreel — and 
his own blood should be licked by them in the same place 
where that of the injured Naboth had been shed. His 
penitence, though temporary, yet sincere, procured the sus- 
pension of his sentence ; but three years afterwards it was 
literally fulfilled. He was killed in a war with the Syrians, 
and the blood which flowed from his chariot at the place 



TRANSLATION OP ELIJAH. 251 

where Naboth had been stoned, was licked up by dogs. 
And the sentence on his atrocious queen, and his family, 
was executed by Jehu, who reigned about thirteen years 
after Ahab. 

In the reign of this prince we have the literal verifica- 
tion of the denunciation of Joshua against the men who 
should rebuild the city of Jericho. Hiel, the Bethelite, re- 
built it, whether presumptuously or in ignorance, we are 
not told ; but " he laid the foundation in Abiram his first- 
born, and set up the gates thereof in his youngest son 
Segub, according to the word of the Lord which he spake 
by Joshua," — above five hundred years after the prophecy 
was delivered. 

Charles, Mother, the words of prophecy are very ob- 
scure : what do you mean by Hiel's laying the foundation 
of Jericho in his first-born, and setting up the gates in his 
youngest son? 

Mother. The meaning of Joshua was, that the man 
who should rebuild Jericho, a city which you may remem- 
ber he utterly destroyed with all its inhabitants — except 
Rahab and her family — because of their accumulated 
crimes — would be punished by the loss of his eldest and 
his youngest son, in the beginning and in the finishing of 
his work. 

The very natural propensity of children to imitate their 
parents, should be a solemn and unceasing admonition to 
the latter, and especially to mothers, who are observed to 
have a more immediate influence on their characters. From 
such a monster of iniquity as Jezebel, no other than an im- 
pious successor to the crown could be expected ; and such 
was Ahaziah, although warned, like his father, by the 
preaching and miracles of Elijah. 

The painful labours of this eminent father in Israel were 
now to receive a splendid reward. Standing on the west- 
ern bank of Jordan, with Elisha, who had attended him 
from the time of his consecration to the prophetic office, 
the waters were divided before them by a stroke of the 
mantle of Elijah, and they passed over on dry ground. 
Elisha was then required to say what blessing should be 
conferred upon him, before they were separated. " That 



252 THE PROPHET ELISHA* 

a double portion of thy spirit may rest upon me" — said 
Elisha ; " and presently, while they talked, there appeared 
a chariot of fire^ and horses of fire, and parted them 
asunder : and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven," 
in the view of the wrapt Elisha : the second person whose 
uncommon purity had received this mark of divine appro-* 
bation — the translation of his body to the regions of ever- 
lasting glory. 

Charles. Were there any witnesses to this wondrous 
event beside his favoured disciple ? 

Mother, The miracles of sacred writ, my son, are for- 
tified against the cavils of objectors by this evidence, 
amongst others equally conclusive — that they were per- 
formed in the presence of a number of competent wit- 
nesses. In this case, fifty pupils of the prophet beheld the 
ascent of Elijah ; yet, although they had received some 
previous intimation of his exit from the earth, on that day 
the manner was so astonishing, and appeared so incredible 
ta them, that they could not believe it had now taken place, 
but sought him three days throughout the valleys and 
mountains of Israel, before they could assent ; thus giving 
weight to their testimony by a scrupulous examination of 
the reality of the miracle. 

EHsha was not surprised, but grieved at the loss of his 
excellent master. Rending his garments, he took up the 
mantle which had fallen from the prophet as he arose, and 
smiting with it the waters, in the name of " the Lord God 
of Elijah," again they parted, and he repassed the Jordan 
on dry ground. 

Ahaziah reigned but two years, and was succeeded by 
his brother Jehoram, both idolaters, though not altogether 
so vile as their father. Jehoram's reign of twelve years, 
was marked by the defection of the Moabites who had 
been tributary to Israel since the time of David. Being 
wounded in a war with the Syrians, he retired to Jezreel 
under the care of his physicians, leaving the army before 
Ramoth-Gilead. Here Jehu, one of his captains who was 
raised up for the destruction of the house of Ahab, and 
had been anointed by Elijah, was a second time conse- 
crated privately, by a messenger from Elisha. The errand 



Ml&ACLiSS OF ELISttA. 25S 

of the young prophet being communicated by Jehu to the 
army, they immediately proclaimed him king, and united 
with him in executing the righteous vengeance of heaven 
on the whole house of Ahab and on Jezebel. But although 
Jehu had the semblance of great zeal for the ancient reli- 
gion, he seems rather to have gratified a cruel temper of 
his own, for whilst he slew the priests of Baal the golden 
calves of Jeroboam remained 1 

But let us turn awhile from these revolting scenes to the 
refreshini^ view of Elisha, whose benevolent miracles were 
the glory of those last-mentioned reigns. Not fewer in 
number nor less resplendent than those of his inspired 
teacher, he discovered that the mantle of Elijah had indeed 
fallen upon him ! 

We have not time to notice every exercise of his divine 
gift ; leaving many for your future entertainment, let us 
now view him compassionately listening to the poor widow 
of a prophet who complained, that being unable to pay the 
creditors of her late husband, they were about to satisfy 
themselves by the sale of her two sons ! 

Charles. Would the law have protected them in so un- 
feeling a measure I 

Mother, The lav/ of Moses did expressly forbid such 
unlimited power over an indigent debtor of their own 
nation. They might compel him to serve them for wages, 
but their intercourse with the heathens who even sacrificed 
their children to their false deities, had coni(:)unded their 
notions of right. All his injunctions of tenderness for the 
widow and the orphan were forgotten ; Elisha therefore 
questioned her as to the possibility of discharging her 
debt. But she declared that her whole substance was re- 
duced to a single pot of oil ! " Go then," said he, " and 
borrow empty vessels, not a few, and fill them all from 
thy pot." Without hesitation she obeyed, and soon re- 
turned delighted, to tell him that every vessel was run- 
ning over, and yet her own was not empty ! Thus the 
happy mother was provided with sualcient to support her- 
self and deliver her children from the merciless creditors ! 

This miracle together with other acts of beneficence so 
exalted the fame of Elisha that good people considered 
22 



254 MIRACLES OF ELISHA. 

themselves honoured by his presence. A wealthy couple 
living at Shunem, whom he sometimes visited in his ex- 
cursions, built an apartment on purpose, and furnished it 
with every convenience for the accommodation of Elisha 
and his servant. Desiring to express his sense of their 
singular attention to his comfort, the grateful prophet in- 
quired of his hostess in what way he could most accept- 
ably requite their kindness. Should he recommend them 
to the notice of the king, or the commander-in-chief of 
the army ? Already blest with affluence, and not emulous 
of any courtly distinction above her neighbours, she de- 
clined the offered favour and professed her entire satisfac- 
tion in her present circumstances by one expressive sen- 
tence — " I dwell among mine own people." Considering 
then, that she had no child, he told her that in the follow- 
ing year, that blessing, so ardently desired by the Israel- 
itish women, should augment her domestic happiness. 
Hardly could her joy and surprise subside into confidence 
even in Elisha : but the word of inspiration was fulfilled 
in the precious gift at the appointed time. A gift which 
was to reward the virtue of the mother, and add another 
august evidence of the divine mission of the prophet. 

At what age we do not learn, but while yet a child, this 
darling boy was one day brought into his mother from the 
field where he had been taken sick as he played beside his 
father. Solicitude and care were ineffectual — his disorder 
continued to increase, and in a very few hours he expired 
in her arms ! 

It is one of the amazing ordinances of providence that 
maternal love, the most subduing of all feelings that touch 
the human heart, does yet stimulate to active exertion, in 
circumstances the most deeply overwhelming ! Whether 
this weeping Shunamite persuaded herself that one latent 
spark of life yet lingered in her beloved child, or whether 
she had heard of the widow of Sarepta, some species of 
hope seemed to point to the prophet Elisha. Concealing 
from her husband the sad event, she only entreated that a 
servant might be spared from the harvest to attend her to 
their benefactor, and laying her son in the chamber of 
Elisha, she hastened to his dwelling on Mount Carmelj. 



MIRACLES OF ELISHA. 255 

Rushing unceremoniously into his presence, her distracted 
air bespoke some unusual distress^ but the almost reproach- 
ful expostulation — " Did I desire a son of my lord — did not 
I say do not deceive me ?" told the melancholy tale. His 
resolution was instantaneous; bidding his servant to go on 
before and lay his staff on the face of the boy, he followed 
the mother to his lodging at Shunem. There shut up 
alone with the breathless object of his affectionate solici- 
tude, the prayer of faith was accepted, and the enraptured 
mother was presently called to receive her reanimated son ! 
Charles. Were these benevolent works of Elisha con- 
fined to his own nation ? 

Mother, Not altogether. He prophesied in Damascus, 
and performed a celebrated cure on a diseased nobleman 
of Syria. 

Charles. Why then did they not embrace the religion 
of the Hebrews, when they saw the divine power that at 
tended its ministration ? 

Mother. That was by no means a necessary conse- 
quence of allowing a due portion of honour to the God of 
the Hebrews. The heathen nations, whilst each had his 
own tutelar god, did not scruple to do homage to those of 
their neighbours. The Israelites were stigmatized as an 
unsociable people, because such intercommunity was for- 
bidden by their law. A more exclusive conversion to the 
God of Israel seems to have been effected in the Syrian 
officer, to whom I just now alluded. Naaman, a man of 
distinction in the court of Syria, was a leper, a species 
of distemper still prevalent in the east, but happily un- 
known to our temperate regions. "A little maid," who 
had been carried away amongst the captives, in a preda- 
tory incursion into Israel, became the servant of Naaman's 
wite. Seeing the affliction of her master, she humanely 
exclaimed — " would to God my lord were with the prophet 
in Samaria ! for he would recover him of his leprosy." 
The idea thus suggested, being reported to the king, he 
wrote a letter, and despatched Naaman with a princely 
present to the king of Samaria. The letter, addressed 
wholly to the king, without any mention of the prophet, 
was considered only as an artifice to involve him in a new 



256 MIRACLES OF ELISHA. 

quarrel with Syria, and he expressed his vexation by tear* 
ing his robes, and impatiently asking — " Am / a God to 
kill and make alive, that this man doth send unto me, to 
recover a man of his leprosy ?" Elisha, hearing of the 
king^s embarrassment, desired that Naaman might come to 
his house, and there learn that there was a prophet in Is- 
rael. At the door of Elisha, and still sitting in his chariot, 
he received only an order to go and wash himself seven 
times in the waters af Jordan. Accustomed to the delu- 
sive tricks of his ov/n priests, and expecting something of 
the same sort from Elisha— his personal appearance at 
least — the application of his hand, or an invocation to the 
God of Israel — -he rejected the simple prescription, with 
proud indignation. " Are not Abana and Pharpar rivers 
of Damascus," he exclaimed, '^ better than all the waters 
of Israel — -may I not wash in them, and be clean ?" 
Health, however, was the one thing desired, and the suf- 
fering Syrian was at length persuaded by his attendants, 
to make the easy experiment, which having done, he re- 
turned to Elisha with the grateful confession of the su- 
premacy of the God of Israel ! Resolving now to abjure 
the false deities of his own country, yet knowing only the 
foolish superstitions of paganism, he requested two mules' 
load of the sacred earth of Israel, wherewith he might 
erect an altar for sacrifice to the only Being whom now 
he would worship ! But his office in the court of Syria 
obliging him to attend his master in the temple, " and bow 
himself down to the god Rimmon," Naaman deprecated,, 
before he left the prophet, the suspicion that might thence 
be cast on the sincerity of his conversion. 

Fanny. Elisha, I suppose, could not sanction such ap- 
parent inconsistency, in the Syrian, as assisting in the 
rites of idols— -whilst he professed to believe only " in 
Jehovah?" 

Mother. He merely bade him go in peace — trusting, 
probably, that his mind would be subsequently enlightened 
in his duty. If Naaman did ignorantly suppose, as some 
have imagined, that his dependent situation might excuse 
his apparent homage to an idol, it is but the transcript of 
pur beartsj who are far better instructed* We have ali 



FAMINE IN SAMARIA. 257 

the same fraudulent plea for some darling indulgence — 
some " besetting sin," for which we say with Naaman, 
" The Lord pardon thy servant in this thing !" 

Two years after this event, Samaria was besieged by 
the Syrians, with excessive rigour. Provisions became so 
dear, as to be entirely beyond the reach of the poorer peo- 
ple, so that the bitterest curse which Moses had declared 
should befal their apostacy was now felt. Distracted 
mothers, in the madness of their hunger, devoured their 
own infants !* 

Lamenting the miseries of his peo[)le, but not repenting 
his own sins — the procuring cause — the king put on sack- 
cloth under his royal robes, and walked out on the wall 
of Samaria. Whilst he ruminated on the sad state of his 
city, though he knew not yet the crisis to which it had 
arrived — the voice of a woman, entreating most piteously 
for help, reached his ear. " If the Lord do not help thee," 
said he despondingly, " whence shall I help thee." In- 
quiring however into the occasion of her appeal, he learnt 
that the petitioner and another female, in the agonies of 
hunger, had agreed to prolong their lives a little space, by 
eating their ow^n children ! Her child had been accord- 
ingly devoured — but now that she claimed the promise of 
her companion, the infant had been concealed and the 
mother refused to produce him ! 

This shocking story inflamed the king's grief into rage 
— and Elisha must be the sacrifice ! Messengers were 
instantly sent to arrest him, but too tardy for the impatient 
vengeance of Jehoram, he followed them himself to strike 
the fatal blow. But his intended victim met him boldly, 
and charged all the guilt on his own head ! 

The hour of relief to the sufferers was nevertheless at 
hand, and the inspired Elisha declared that Samaria should 
revel in abundance on the morrow. One of the king's at- 
tendants repelled the prophecy with scorn — such a thing 
would be impossible unless food were rained down from 
heaven into their hands ! " Thou shalt see it," — replied 
Elisha, '• with thine eyes, but shalt not eat thereof!" 

* Deut. 28, 57., six hundred years before this event 

22* 



258 . SAMARIA RELIEVED. 

Charles, How indeed could such a supply take place sa 
soon as the very next day ? 

Mother. By means of an event unexpected indeed, but 
very far from incredible. A supernatural noise in the 
night was made to disturb the besieging camp — the air 
was filled with terrific sounds — chariots and horsemen 
and the hosts of confederated nations seemed to approach 
— darkness increased the universal panic, and the Syrians, 
unprepared for resistance, fled precipitately for their lives, 
leaving their tents stored with provisions and gold* Four 
men, who being infected with the leprosy, were lodged 
without the walls,* had concluded that death from the 
enemy's hand was not more to be dreaded than that which 
awaited them- from famine, and perhaps they might be 
preserved by going over to them. To the Syrian camp,, 
therefore, they went by the dawn of day, and found it 
completely abandoned ! After satisfying their hunger, and 
concealing such articles of plunder as they chose for them- 
selves — they returned with the joyful news to Samaria. — 
The famishing inhabitants rushed out in crowds to the 
providential banquet : the charge of the gate was given to 
the incredulous lord who had despised the prediction of 
Elisha — and there he received the punishment of his in- 
fidelity ^ for he was trampled to death by the impetuous 
multitude, whom no authority could restrain at such a 
moment. 

Such substantial benefits following the prediction of 
Elisha, he commanded some reverence even from Jehoram 
himself — for we are ever ready to do homage to the talents; 
that promote our own interests. One day whilst he talk- 
ed with Gehazi, the prophet's servant, of the miracles 
which his master had performed, and was listening to the 
interesting story of his having restored the son of the 
Shunamite to life ; the mother herself appeared in the pre- 
sence of the king 1 Before the pressure of the famine, she 
had retired by the advice of the prophet into the country 
of Philistia, to avoid the approaching evil. Returning 
whea that was past, and after an interval of seven years,, 

*Levitc. 13. V.46. 



MIRACLE IN ELISHa's TOMB. 259^ 

she found her house and land in the possession of another,- 
and now came to the king to entreat his interposition for 
the recovery of her property. Gehazi fortunately being 
present and pleading the friendship of his master for the 
Shunamite, she received at once the royal order, for the 
restoration of her landsr 

Elisha flourished in Israel more than ^Clj years, and al* 
though his ministrations produced no permanent effect 
upon their morals, he was yet highly respected by the peo- 
ple. Indeed, it was impossible to withhold their assent to 
the divinity of his mission, because his prophecies, relating 
chiefly to the events of his own times, were fulfilled before 
their eyes. Nor did his wondrous influence cease with hi* 
life. Some months after his death, his decaying corpse 
was seen to revivify a dead body, which but touched it ac- 
cidentally. 

Charles. Accidentally — was not the dead body put into 
the grave of the prophet in the expectation of this happy 
consequence T 

Mother, Nothing similar to this miracle had ever oc- 
curred, to give birth to such a hope. The funeral of a man 
was proceeding to another place of burial, when the at- 
tendants were alarmed by the sudden appearance of a band 
of plundering Moabites. Consulting only their own safety ^ 
they hastily put the corpse into the sepulchre of Elisha, 
which chanced to be at hand, and would have fled from the 
apprehended violence of the marauders — but astonishment 
must have riveted them to the spot, when they saw their 
friend awakened from the sleep of death, on but touching: 
the bones of Elisha.^ 

Elisha lived to see his prophecy against the house of 
Ahab executed by Jehu : and Hazael, the Syrian, accord- 
ing also with the prediction, become the oppressor of Is- 
rael — dismembering the kingdom of the land of Gilead, 
and treating the inhabitants with great barbarity. The pos- 
terity of Jehu possessed the throne of Israel, to the fourth 
generation, agreeably to the promise made to him as the 



* A splendid painting of this miracle, by ovlt ingenious eountry- 
maxiy Alston, is exhibited in the Academy of Fine Arts, in this city* 



260 THE TEN TRIBES CARRIED AWAY. 

reward of his obedience in some important particulars. In 
the reign of Jehoash, the grandson of Jehu, a successful 
war was carried on against Ben-hadad, the son of Hazael, 
and the cities which his father had taken were recovered ; 
but the history of the ten tribes is but the continual history 
of vicissitude and war — of idolatry, usurpation and mur- 
der — preparing the way, by rapid steps, to that complete 
extermination which had often been foretold. 

About thirty years, from the deposition of Jehu's family, 
including the reign of four kings — all of whom, excepting 
one, were subjects, and obtained the crown by putting their 
respective sovereigns to death, — brings us down to the 
reign of Hoshea, another assassin and usurper. 

In the preceding reign, Tiglath-pileser, the king of As- 
syria, had taken some of the finest provinces of Israel, 
and carried the inhal^itants into captivity. Shalmaneser, 
his son and successor, attacked the remainder, and laid 
Hoshea under tribute. Confederating with Egypt, which 
was now very powerful, the king of Israel vainly hoped to 
shake off the ignominious yoke, and withheld the tribute. 
But Shalmaneser, hearing of the conspiracy, came again 
into Palestine, and besieged Samaria, which, after three 
years' defence, was taken : the conquered king was impri- 
soned, and the inhabitants were all carried into the cities 
of the Modes, which had before received their unhappy 
brethren. 

Thus ten of the twelve tribes which took possession of 
the land of Canaan, literally exemplified the prophecy of 
Moses.* (B. C. 677.) " It shall come to pass, if thou wilt 
not hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to ob- 
serve to do all his commandments, and his statutes, which 
I command thee this day — the Lord shall bring thee and 
thy king which thou shalt set over thee, unto a nation 
which neither thou nor thy fathers have known, and there 
thou shalt serve other gods, wood, and stone." 

The land of Israel, thus stripped of her native sons, was 
re-peopled by Assyrians, whom the conqueror sent thither. 
Finding their new habitations infested by wild beasts, by 

* Deut. xxviii. 15—36. 



SAMARIA COLONIZED BY CtJTHEANS. 261 

whom some of the colonists were killed, they were seized 
with religious terror, and ascribed the visitation to their 
ignorance of the manner in which the deity of that place 
ought to be worshipped. A priest, of the captives, was 
therefore sent to instruct them ; but if he taught them at 
all to know the God of Israel, they only received Him 
amongst the number of their own deities : thus a mongrel 
religion was introduced, and was perpetuated to their pos- 
terity, who were denominated Samaritans. They were also 
called Cutheans — because some of the strangers came from 
a place called Cuth. 

Catherine. Were there any prophets in Israel, in the 
times of which you have been speaking, besides Elijah and 
Elisha ? 

Mother. Several of those who are called the minor 
prophets lived in this period. Amos and Hosea foretold 
the destruction of Israel, in the reign of the second Jero- 
boam, the great-grandson of Jehu, because there was " no 
truth, nor mercy, nor knowledge of God in the land," — 
that Samaria should become desolate, and the Assyrian 
should be her king. Amos stood boldly in the temple of 
the golden calf, at Bethel, and told the people that " their 
impious feasts should be turned into mourning — their songs 
into lamentations," — that " Israel should be led away cap- 
tive out of their own land, and scattered amongst the na- 
tions." His warning was called a conspiracy ; the king 
and his priests were uneasy ; but not choosing to lay vio-. 
lent hands on him, they entreated that he would go from 
them, and prophesy in Judah — but the faithful pastor re- 
plied, that he was expressly sent unto Israel — that he had 
not been educated in the sacred college, nor did he call on 
them in the casual exercise of a profession — " I was no 
prophet," said he, " nor the son of a prophet ; but a herd- 
man, and a gatherer of sycamore fruit ; and as I followed 
the flock, Jehovah said unto me, Go prophecy unto my 
people, Israel." And Micah, in the reign of Hoshea, de- 
clared to them, that sacrificial rites, however multiplied^ 
would not atone for their transgressions. They were re- 
quired " to do justly, to love mercy, and walk humbly 
with their God ;" and that having neglected these com* 



2G2 DISOBEDIENCE OF JONAH. 

mands, and " kept the statutes of Omri, and all the works 
of the house of Ahab," the Assyrian should desolate their 
land. 

As I propose to give you a general view of the pro- 
phetic writings, by and by, I merely notice them now as 
they are connected with the several parts of Jewish his- 
tory. The book of Jonah does not come within this de- 
scription ; but, as he flourished at this period, it may be 
proper to mention it in this place; and, as it is wholly nar- 
rative, you will be entertained, as well as edified, by a 
more particular account of its contents. 

Jonah is supposed to have foretold, in the reign of Je- 
hoahaz, king of Israel, the restoration of the coasts of that 
country, which had been seized by Hazael, the Syrian, and 
were recovered by the second Jeroboam. I do not state a 
supposition with respect to the prophecy, but to the precise 
time in which it was delivered, which is an unimportant 
circumstance. 

But his principal mission was to a Gentile nation. He 
was the instrument employed to suspend the threatened 
judgments against the great metropolis of Assyria. Ni- 
neveh was very ancient, dating its foundation so early as 
the time of Asher, the grandson of Noah. It was sixty 
miles in circuit, and contained not less than six hundred 
thousand persons. Abounding in wealth, it was immoral 
to excess — and Jonah was commanded to tell the inhabit- 
ants, that unless they repented, in forty days their city 
would be destroyed. 

It is not likely that the great, Supreme would leave his 
servant in doubt about the source of a command from him- 
self, in whatever way communicated. Jonah well knew 
that obedience was his duty ; but he wanted fortitude to 
dare the rage of the proud Ninevites, and, without reflect- 
ing that he could not flee from the Lord of the Universe, 
he determined to neglect his mandate, and go to Tarshish. 

Catherine, Tarshish ? that was the place from which 
David and Solomon imported such immense quantities of 
gold. 

Mother. No : it was more probably another Tarshish. 
The scriptures seem to speak of two places of that nanie, 



JONAH SWALLOWED BY A WlIALE. 263 

but do not describe the situation of either. Both the Tarsh* 
ish and the Ophir, whose gold was so abundant in Jerusa* 
lem, are supposed to be in East India. The city to which 
Jonah attempted to retire, is said to be the same which is 
called Tarsus in the New Testament — the birth-place of 
Paul) and so named from Tarshish, its founder, a grand- 
son of Japhet, whose posterity, you may remember, I told 
you, migrated to Europe. 

To go to Tarshish, Jonah took a passage on board a 
ship at Joppa — now Jaffa, on the Mediterranean. But soon 
a tremendous storm sent the terrified mariners to call upon 
their gods for deliverance. Lots, too, were cast to disco- 
ver the offender, for whose sake they were in peril, that he 
might be sacrificed to the vengeance of the angry deities* 
The lot falling on the disobedient prophet, he was awaken* 
ed from a sleep and entreated to call also upon his God, 
and to declare to his companions the cause of their present 
danger. With the deepest contrition, he acknowledged 
that he had been sent to Nineveh, and had " fled from the 
face of the Lord." Assuring them of safety to themselves, 
he desired them to cast him into the sea; but humanity 
prompted them first to try every other means of preserva- 
tion. The tempest, however, still raging, the sailors con- 
fess the sovereignty of Jonah's God, and commit him to 
the waves. Punishment alone, not death, being designed, 
Jonah was swallowed by a great fish, and, after remain- 
ing three days in his gloomy tomb, was cast alive on dry 
land. 

Convinced now that He who could preserve him three 
days, in the bosom of the great deep, could protect him in 
the execution of his mission, he went immediately to Ni- 
neveh, and proclaimed the dread decree : " Yet forty days 
and Nineveh shall be overthrown !" 

It is very possible that the report of the late miracle 
may have disposed the inhabitants to listen to the prophet: 
perhaps his incarceration within a great whale, declared 
by himself, was believed. Certainly, his message was ac- 
companied by such evidence as could not be evaded, for it 
produced obedience, the genuine fruit of faith. The king 
laid aside his royal robes, and putting on sackcloth, com- 



* MIRACLE OF THE GOTTRI). 

manded his people to follow his example, to keep a riHd 
ia«t, denying themselves, and their beasts even, so mu°ch 
as water,-to turn from every evil way, and repent h^art 
Uy and to pray earnestly;-" who can'tell," saTd L, « ,f 
God w,ll turn from h.s fierce anger, that w'e perish Aot^'' 
Accordmgly, the prayer of faith ascended to the Throne 
of Grace, and Nmeveh was spared for a time. 

preaSg" ""' ^°"'^ ''^''""^ ^' '^' ^"'^^^^^ of his 

oth"!?/^''TK '^^r P'^P^"'"' "y '°"' ^^^'-^ but men, like 
others. They foresaw events the most unlikely, and thev 
performed wondrous miracles; but they had ihe failinS 
of humanity. In the faithful record of their errors w! 
have a triumphant answer to those who tell us, hS'the 
Messmh, "of whom they spake," was but a pr;phe liK 
themselves :-m one, we see infirm creatures-in the o'he; 
a perfect character. Jonah was not only tim.S, but cu -' 

t'etjo^rry ^^'^ own honour. In tL probable pen 
tence of the N.nevites, and the consequent reversal of h 9 
denuncmtion he feared that his prophetic name mi °ht be 
arnished Already forgetting the pardon of his own sin 

m'ICud: n^'h'- ?H '^™'^ "'"''^y ^'^ been accorded to a 
multitude of his fellow creatures. Uncertain, however, of 
the event, he went out of the city, and sat down on an 
eminence, to observe its fate. Repenting Nineveh still 
reared her proud towers-her princely p!laces and her 
stupendous walls survived the threateiid day and Jonah 
peevishly exclaimed, « Was not this mv sJ^in" when I 

?arsh?h "forfk"""*,?- ^'^^••^^^^•^ r fled" before unto 
la.shish. for I knew that thou art a gracious God, and 
merciful; slow to anger, and of o-rent \m^n. j 

pentest thee of the evfl. Therelr^ w O S Tate"" 
^^Itvr ^^'^ ^-- -> «>r it is beuer fort't^die 



Suddenly, m the course of one night, "a gourd" or 
spreading vine, was made to spring up from the earth and 
surround him with a grateful shelter ; as suddenlyTa worn 
preyed upon its root, and in a night it perished. ^Ex3 
now to a scorching wind and meridian sun, combined w'^h 
the corroding effects of a wounded mind, the suffering pro- 



EEIGN OF JEHORAM. 265 

phet lamented the loss of his bower, and prayed again for 
death. " Then," said the Lord, " thou hast had pity on 
the gourd, for the which thou hast not laboured, neither 
madest it grow, which came up in a night, and perished in 
a night : and should not i spare Nineveh, that great city, 
wherein are more than six score thousand persons that 
cannot discern between their right hand and their left hand, 
and also much cattle f ' 

By this beautiful illustration, the prophet's selfishness 
was reproved, and an affecting moral left for our improve- 
ment. How apt are we to behold, unmoved, the calami- 
ties of others, whilst we murmur and repine at the small- 
est inconvenience to ourselves ! We are all sinners, and, 
therefore, subjected to trials. Let us submit with patience 
to the loss of our dearest treasures, and sympathize with 
others in their sorrows ; remembering, that however dis- 
tinguished by names, or by nations, the whole human race 
are our brethren — heirs, alike, of divine mercy and im- 
mortal bliss. 

Having seen the awful end of apostacy in the ten tribes, 
let us return to the house of David, and, in the same sum- 
mary manner, take a view of their progress to ruin ; for 
they too apostatized, but not to the same unpardonable ex- 
cess ; nor was their doom irrevocable, like that of the sis- 
ter state. 

We left the kingdom of Judah in the hands of Jehosha- 
phat, upon whose death the crown devolved to Jehoram, 
his son. Jehoram was married to Athaliah, the daughter 
of Ahab, the king of Israel, and was seduced, by this un- 
fortunate connexion, to imitate the vices of that wicked 
prince. His heart, however, must have been radically bad, 
for he inhumanly put all his brothers to death, besides 
others of the chief men of Jerusalem. All the pious regu- 
lations of his father were now abolished, and the people 
compelled to worship the images of the Gentiles. The 
Edomites, who had been conquered and made a province 
of the empire by David, took advantage of the convulsions 
into which the misconduct of Jehoram threw the common- 
wealth, and, revolting from him, made a king for them- 
selves. Thus the prophecy of Isaac, delivered nearly nine 
23 



266 CORONATION OF JOASH. 

hundred years before, was fulfilled — that Esau should be 
subject to Jacob ; but, in time, should liberate himself from 
the yoke. (Gen. 27. 40.) About the same time, the Phi- 
listines and Arabians broke suddenly into the royal city, 
plundered the palace, and carried away the wives of .Teho- 
ram, and all his sons, except Ahaziah, the youngest. After 
a miserable reign of eight years, Jehoram was afflicted 
with a very dreadful disease, and died unlamented by his 
people, who marked their disapprobation of his character 
by refusing to inter him in the sepulchres of their kings. 
Ahaziah, or Jehoahaz, as he is also called, next ascended 
the throne, and in his short rule of one year, and under 
the influence of his mother, pursued the steps of the late 
reign. On a visit to the king of Israel, he was seized in 
Samaria, by Jehu, and put to death, because he was, by 
his mother's side, descended from Ahab. This ambitious 
woman, inheriting the vices of her family, procured the 
death of all the princes of the blood in whom she might 
expect a competition for the government, and held the reins 
herself seven years. At that time, an heir to the throne 
unexpectedly appeared in young Joash, a son of Ahaziah, 
who had been concealed since the massacre of his bre- 
thren, in the chambers of the temple, by his aunt, the wife 
of Jehoiada, the priest. Preparations being secretly made 
for his coronation, the Levites, the singers, and musicians, 
in their places, the young prince, at the age of seven years, 
was invested, with the usual solemnities, and without inter- 
ruption, until the acclamations of '' God save the king," 
with the sound of the cymbals and trumpets, alarming the 
queen, she rushed into the temple, tearing her robes and 
crying Treason ! But her crimes had excited such abhor- 
rence, that not a voice was heard in her behalf, and her 
life was only spared till she could be conveyed beyond the 
sacred courts. 

Fanny, What were the solemnities observed at the co- 
ronation of a king ? 

Mother, He was anointed by the High Priest, the crown 
put upon his head, and " the book of the law" delivered 
into his hand — to remind him that he was most diligently 
to study its precepts, and make them the rule of his whole 



REIGN OF AMAZIAH. 267 

conduct. In this case, where opposition was apprehended, 
the guards of the temple were armed, and surrounded the 
king; and the people having been greatly corrupted by 
the disorders of the former reigns, were called upon to re- 
new their covenant of allegiance to Jehovah — the only true 
God. 

The excellent Jehoiada was far advanced in years at the 
time of this revolution. He lived to the great age of a 
hundred and thirty, and was an eminent blessing to the 
nation ; for all the days of his life they were obedient and 
prospered. The tribute-money for the sacred treasury was 
regularly collected — the temple was repaired, the golden 
vessels which Athaliah had carried to her idols, were re- 
placed, and the institutions of Moses were all carefully re- 
stored. In short, the public usefulness and activity of Je- 
hoiada were so highly esteemed, that his remains were dis- 
tinguished by the particular honour of a burial in the mag- 
nificent sepulchre of the kings. 

The great national advantage of such a counsellor was 
manifested by the disorders which soon followed on the 
death of this upright priest. The nobles about the young 
king, who had not been well affected to the reformation, 
by their flatteries and intrigues persuaded him to restore 
the idols, and worship in the consecrated groves. A deaf 
ear was turned to the prophets, who visited them in mercy, 
and even Zachariah, the son of their benefactor Jehoiada, 
and now the high priest, was ungratefully stoned to death, 
for presuming to denounce the wrath of heaven. 

The next year, Jerusalem was invaded by the Syrians 
— a great number of the nobles were slaughtered, and their 
moveable effects carried off to Damascus, the capital of 
Syria. Joash himself fell by a conspiracy of his own 
servants; and Amaziah, his son, ascended the throne of 
Judah. Amaziah experienced the same fate, after a reign 
of nine and twenty years. His conduct, too, was like that 
of his father — beginning auspiciously, but terminating in 
idolatry. Ambitious of bringing back the Edomites to the 
crown of Judah, he destroyed twenty thousand of that un- 
fortunate people. Elated by his victory, and ascribing it 
to the gods of Idumea, he brought their images into the 



268 REIGN OF UZZIAH. 

holy land, and offered incense to them. Meanwhile, the 
Israelites, in revenge for not having been permitted to par- 
ticipate in the expedition, fell upon the northern cities of 
Judah, plundered them, and killed three thousand of the 
inhabitants ; and advancing to Jerusalem with savage fero- 
city, they broke down four hundred cubits of the city wall, 
and rifled both the palace and the temple. 

Fanny. That the treasures of the temple should allure 
the heathen enemies of Judah, is not surprising; but that 
the posterity of Abraham should themselves have become 
so lost to all sense of decorum as to commit the sacrilege 
of robbing that august depository, is really extraordinary. 

Mother. It is not surprising, my dear, that they who 
had cast off the Sovereign, should cease to venerate his 
earthly habitation. We are very apt to be disgusted by 
the impiety of the Israelites, but we may often moderate 
our feelings, by comparing them with ourselves. How 
often have conquerors who called themselves Christians, 
been enriched by the spoils of Christian temples ! Pride, 
and ambition, are the same in all ages ; education, and op- 
portunity, do but vary their forms. 

Uzziah, to whose reign we are now come, was another 
example of the fatal influence of prosperity. He was vir- 
tuous, and became powerful. The civil honours of the ad- 
ministi'ation were then not enough. He went into the sanc- 
tuary and took a censer to burn incense, but his presump- 
tion excluded him ever after from that holy place — for, re- 
senting the freedom of the priests, who reproved his inva- 
sion of their oflice, he was smitten with leprosy, and could 
no more approach the altar. (Lev. xiii. 46.) 

Jotham, his son, affords a more pleasing picture. His 
reign was short, but beneficial to the kingdom ; the waste 
places were repaired, cities and fortresses were erected, and 
large subsidies obtained from the neighbouring kings. 

Again every thing was reversed in the succeeding reign. 
Ahaz, a most abominable wretch, who exceeded all his pre- 
decessors and all the kings of Israel in depravity, sacri- 
ficed his own children, in imitation of the heathens. Greater 
provocations never reached the throne of Justice : accord- 
ingly, he was severely chastised by Pekah, king of Israel, 
and Rezin, king of Syria. 



REIGN OF AHAZ. 269 

Confederating together, they invaded Judah, with an im- 
mense army ; besieged Ahaz in the metropolis, and ra- 
vaged his territories in every direction. But the punish- 
ment of the king, not the total ruin of the empire, being 
the design of this visitation, Ahaz was encouraged to de- 
fend the city, by the prophet Isaiah, who had now begun 
to shed the lustre of his sublime prophecies on the favoured 
land. Success crowned his resistance, and his enemies 
went away disappointed. The heart of Ahaz, however, re- 
maining untouched by his merciful preservation, another 
chastisement by the hand of the two kings, in the follow- 
ing year, more severely afflicted him. The valuable port 
of Elath was taken by the Syrians, and the Jews*' were 
driven thence ; whilst the Israelites slew a hundred and 
twenty thousand of their brethren, and carried away cap- 
tives to the enormous amount of two hundred thousand. 
These poor people had the good fortune to return to their 
own country. Oded, a prophet in Samaria, reproved the 
victors for their excessive cruelty to their kinsmen. The 
Elders would not suffer them to be brought into the city ; 
but comforted and refreshed them, and conducted them 
safely back as far as Jericho. The confederated kings 
were both slain soon after, as had been foretold by Isaiah, 
— Pekah by his servant Hoshea, as I have already told 
you in the history of Israel — and Rezin by the Assyrians. 

Scarcely was Judah delivered from these powerful ene- 
mies, before her territory was invaded on the south and 
west, by the Philistines and Edomites, who took several 
cities and villages. In this new distress, instead of asking 
relief from the gracious Hand which had before brought 
him unmerited deliverance, the degenerate king sent to As- 
syria for assistance. Tiglath-pileser, who now reigned, 
came indeed at his invitation, but it was only to reduce him 
still lower, by receiving large presents from the nobles, 
and gold and silver from the temple, the stipulated price 
of his alliance, without doing any real service to the dis- 
tracted country. But the treasures of Jerusalem assisted 

* This is tlie first place in Scripture where this name occurs : 2 
Kings, xvi. 6. 
23* 



270 REIGN OF HEZEKIAH. 

Tiglath in his meditated hostilities against other neighbour- 
ing powers. Having brought an army into that quarter 
under the pretext of relieving Judah, on his way back he 
seized upon Galilee in the north of Israel, and all their do- 
minions beyond Jordan ; then marching on to Syria, he 
put an end to that kingdom, after it had lasted ten genera- 
tions, having been founded in the reign of Solomon.* 

After all these calamities, and the ruinous treachery of 
Tiglath-pileser notwithstanding, Ahaz condescended to 
meet him on his return to Damascus from the conquest of 
Syria. 

Catherine. Perhaps this seeming respect was extorted 
by his dependence on Assyria. 

Mother. It is very likely ; but his corrupted heart kept 
pace with his political degradation. At Damascus, he was 
so delighted with the form of a pagan altar, that he sent a 
model to Jerusalem, and commanded the priests to erect 
one in all respects like it, against his return. In short, 
altars were now seen in every corner of the land, and 
finally the temple doors were closed, and the worship of 
Jehovah entirely suppressed. 

Happily for suffering Judah, these outrages were ar- 
rested by the death of their tyrant in the flower of his age, 
and the institutions of their fathers again restored by his 
successor Hezekiah. 

Hezekiah, the son of Ahaz, was probably indebted to 
the instructions of his mother, who was the daughter of 
Zachariah, a zealous minister of the true religion, that he 
came to the throne with an utter abhorrence of the pre- 
vailing impiety. No sooner was the power in his hands, 
than the groves and images were pulled down, the temple 
opened and purified, the Levites gathered in from their re- 
treats, and all the officers of the sanctuary again estab- 
lished in the 'order appointed by David. Sin offerings were 
presented, and, as early as possible, preparation was made 
for the celebration of a grand passover. Hezekiah him- 
self superintended every thing, and exhorted the priests to 
be diligent, that atonement might speedily be made for the 

* See Prideaux, vol. i. p. 4. 



EEIGN OF HEZEKIAH. 271 

transgressions of their fathers, and the wrath of heaven be 
turned away from all Israel. This reformation commenced 
in the beginning of the first month, but such was the deso- 
lation and impurity of the temple, that it was not ready 
for the passover until the second month ; it was therefore 
determined by the king and his counsellors, to observe the 
festival on the fourteenth day of the second month, instead 
of the fourteenth of the first as originally appointed. By 
this arrangement, too, a sufficient time was allowed to send 
expresses throughout the Holy Land, proclaiming the in- 
tended passover. This remarkable event took place in the 
reign of Hoshea, the last king of the revolted tribes, and 
afler they had been so greatly humbled by the first cap- 
tivity of his subjects by Tiglath-pileser. The good king 
Hezekiah, compassionating the oppressed and precarious 
condition of Israel, affectionately invited them also to re- 
pair to Jerusalem, persuading them by the interesting con- 
sideration, that their prayers and humiliation might be the 
means of restoring their relatives to their native country. 

Some of these infatuated people read the royal rescript 
only with derision, but many gladly accepted the opportu- 
nity, and the feast was held with great splendour and joy, 
not only seven days, but another seven, to manifest their 
gratitude and willingness to return to the gracious Being 
whom they had so long forsaken. 

Fanny, Did not the revolt of the ten tribes exclude 
them from the right of assisting in the solemnities of the 
annual festival at Jerusalem ? 

Mother. By no means. They were still the posterity 
of Jacob, and their right to all the privileges bestowed on 
that people was never questioned. There is reason to be- 
lieve, that there were always individuals, amidst the ut- 
most profligacy of the nation, who would willingly have 
availed themselves of those advantages ; but all the insti- 
tutions of their religion, and the passover itself, were now 
very carelessly performed, and were often entirely neglect- 
ed, by Judah as well as Israel. Profane authors, to whom 
we are not unfrequently indebted for the elucidation of 
passages, obscure either from the brevity of sacred writ, 
or our own imperfect knowledge of the manners of the 



272 REIGN OF HEZEKIAH. 

times, inform us, that guards were stationed on the fron- 
tiers of their dominions by the kings of the ten tribes, to 
prevent the resort of their subjects to Jerusalem, on these 
great national occasions ; apprehending, as Jeroboam did 
on his revolt, that they might be tempted back to their first 
standard. The calves of Dan and Bethel were now gone ; 
the precious metal of which they were made, had not es- 
caped the rapacity of successive invaders ; and this cir- 
cumstance, perhaps, together with the degraded state of 
his kingdom, operating on the humbled Hoshea, he laid no 
further restraint on such as might choose to worship at Je- 
rusalem, nor did he hinder them from breaking down, on 
their return, the heathen altars, which they did with all the 
enthusiasm of new converts to the holy cause. Alas ! it 
was the last ray of departing glory to this unhappy people, 
for Samaria was soon afterwards sacked by Shalmaneser, 
and themselves either massacred, or sent to end their days 
in Assyria. 

Amongst other objects of their misguided devotion, the 
brazen serpent which Moses had erected in the wilderness, 
had remained to this day an object of superstitious venera- 
tion. Hezekiah therefore took it down and broke it in 
pieces, resolving, wisely, to remove every sensible object 
which, by any association in their depraved imaginations, 
might seduce them from the pure and spiritual worship of 
the invisible Jehovah. 

Religion thus restored to an honourable footing in Ju- 
dah, by the determined vigilance of the king, his civil en- 
terprises were alike blest with success. The wisest of their 
monarchs had recorded, that " Righteousness exalteth a 
nation," and their experience had invariably attested the 
truth of the sacred axiom. Not only were the places that 
had been wrested from them by the Philistines, retaken, 
but much of that country was also added to the dominions 
of Hezekiah. In this flourishing state of his affairs, the 
king of Judah ventured to refuse the tribute which his 
father had promised to Assyria, and escaped with impu- 
nity for that time, Shalmaneser being engaged in wars 
with other powers. 

In the fourteenth year of Hezekiah's reign, Shalmaneser 



hezekiah's life prolonged. 273 

being dead, Sennacherib, his son, ascended the throne of 
Assyria, and immediately renewed the demand of tribute 
from the king of Judah ; and Hezekiah, in the vain hope 
of peace, or desirous of time to prepare against a foe so 
very formidable, agreed to pay him an immense sum of 
silver and gold, considerably exceeding one million of dol- 
lars. To raise this vast tribute, he was obliged to empty 
his treasury, and even to despoil the temple of some of its 
precious ornaments. But whilst any thing remains, the 
ambition of an unprincipled conqueror is unsatisfied. Israel 
had fallen, and Judah must add another gem to the proud 
crown of Assyria. Israel had fallen " because they had 
neglected the statutes of the God of Israel." Sennacherib 
was yet to learn that the obedient were assured of His pro- 
tection. Israel was delivered up by the God they had for- 
saken ; His power was therefore derided by Assyria, and 
blasphemous messages to Hezekiah demanded the sur- 
render of Jerusalem. Its inhabitants were called upon to 
rebel against their king and give up the city before a 
famine should compel them, and he himself was reproached 
with the vain hope that he should receive succours from 
the deceitful king of Egypt. Or if he depended on the 
arm of his God—" Is it not he," cried the herald, "whose 
altars Hezekiah hath taken away, and restricted his sub- 
jects to one altar in Jerusalem ?" 

Catherine, Did the Assyrians make no distinction be- 
tween the sacred Temple and their idolatrous groves ? 

Mother, They knew of none, perhaps — the violation 
of an altar was impiety with them, whether it were dedi- 
cated to the God of heaven, or to the gods of the nations. 
In this critical state of his capital, besieged and insulted 
by a formidable and victorious foe — Hezekiah was seized, 
as it is supposed, with a pestilential disease, and received 
a message by Isaiah, to prepare him.self for death. Still 
in the prime of life, flourishing, happy, and the delight of 
his subjects, it is not surprising that we find him extremely 
cast down and praying earnestly for a reprieve. A re- 
prieve was graciously granted, for fifteen years, and the 
promise was confirmed by a sign, so transcendantly strange, 
and so hard to be understood, that I can only relate it in 



274 ASSYRIAN ARMV DESTROYED. 

the words of the prophet by whom the message was sent. 
" I have heard," said Isaiah, " thy prayer — ^I have seen 
thy tears — behold I will heal thee ; on the third day thou 
shalt go up unto the house of the Lord. I will add unto 
thy days fifteen years. And I will deliver thee and this 
city out of the hand of the king of Assyria, and I will de- 
fend this city. And this shall be a sign unto thee from the 
Lord, that the Lord will do this thing that he hath spoken. 
Behold I will bring the shadow of the degrees, which is 
gone down in the sun-dial of Ahaz, ten degrees backward." 

In the mean time, Hezekiah had prepared for the threat- 
ened assault. The walls of the city were repaired — the 
wells and water-courses without, were filled up or turned 
into new channels — darts, shields, and spears, were made 
ready, and his army put into good order. Yet did he not 
trust in his own strength, but sent his chiefs, clothed in 
sackcloth, to desire the prayers of Isaiah, — and when he 
had recovered from his illness, he went himself on the ap- 
pointed third day, arrayed in the same mournful garb, and 
carrying the profane letters of Sennacherib in his hand, to 
the temple of the Lord of hosts, to deprecate his wrath. 
Again the prophet was commanded to assure him that 
" the king of Assyria should not come into the city, nor 
shoot an arrow there, nor come before it with a shield, nor 
cast a bank against it, but should return by the way that 
he came." 

The same night, the " destroying angel" went through 
the Assyrian camp — and the morning light discovered the 
dead bodies of a hundred and eighty -five thousand men to 
their astonished chief. Terror-struck by the awful spec- 
tacle, he retired precipitately with the remnant, leaving his 
tents, richly stored with silver and gold, to the rejoicing 
Israelites. 

Catherine, I have somiCwhere read that this sudden 
destruction was caused by lightning. 

Mother, It was more likely effected by the Simoom, a 
hot and suffocating wind, which, in the East, is often fatal 
to vast numbers, particularly in the night, whilst sleeping. 
This conjecture is strengthened by the words of Isaiah, in 
his encouraging message to Hezekiah : " I will send a hlast 



EMBASSY TO HEZEKIAH. 275 

upon him, and he shall return to his own land, and I will 
cause him to fall by the sword in his own land." The sa- 
cred text is silent as to the means by which this great army 
was destroyed — no doubt it was by the agency of some 
natural cause. But both parts of the prophecy were ful- 
filled ; Sennacherib returned hastily to Nineveh, and there 
fell by the sword of his own sons, whilst he worshipped in 
the house of his god Nisroch. 

Fanny. The miracle of bringing back the shadow on 
the sun-dial is too strange — too singular to be understood 
— can you tell us in what manner the effect was produced ? 

Mother, Nothing more is communicated to us than the 
accomplishment of the sign promised ; " that the sun did 
return ten degrees, by which degrees it was gone down ;" 
and it is not for us '* to be wise above what is written." It 
is our business to examine and to be satisfied with the evi- 
dences for the inspiration of the Scriptures — we shall then 
never stumble at miracles. Prophecy was altogether mi- 
raculous, and its fulfilment, in examples without number, 
takes away every pretext for incredulity. Miracles are 
never spoken of as common events, but as things entirely 
out of the common course of nature, and produced for 
some special end. This retrogression of the heavenly bo- 
dies — and a similar event in the life of Joshua — were so 
far different from other miracles, that the effect was ex- 
tended beyond the observation of the persons for whom the 
mighty deeds were performed. Hence an opportunity was 
afforded to the enemies of the Jewish religion, to contra- 
dict their public records, had they attempted an imposition. 
But no such question has come down to us. On the con- 
trary, the history of the Chinese is said to speak of a day 
of uncommon length, corresponding with the time of Jo- 
shua : and in the case of Hezekiah, ambassadors came 
from Babylon, to congratulate him on his recovery, and 
" to inquire of the wonder that was done in the land,^^ 

The honour of an embassy, however, from Babylon, 
and that, too, occasioned by a distinguished favour from 
the King of kings, was fatal to the pious monarch. The 
latent spark of human pride was awakened — all the splen- 
dour of his palace was displayed, the strength of his ar- 



276 DEATH OF HEZEKIAH. 

moury, and his treasury — replenished by the spoils which 
the terrified Sennacherib had left in his camp — were ex- 
hibited to the Babylonish princes. 

We should have expected to hear him who had pub- 
lished a memorial of his sickness and an humble acknow- 
ledgment of the mercy which had restored him— giving the 
glory of his riches to the Supreme Benefactor—" the Giver 
of every good and perfect gift." But we read with pity, 
that " his heart was lifted up" — '' that he rendered not ac- 
cording to the benefit received" — wherefore his prophetic 
monitor now told him, that of his treasures nothing should 
be left — but the day should come when both they, and his 
children, should be taken away by the very people who 
had witnessed his vain glory. 

The remainder of Hezekiah's life was exempt from any 
disturbance, either foreign or domestic. His whole reign 
of twenty-nine years having been highly beneficial to the 
nation, his death was deeply lamented, and he was buried 
with great pomp, in the highest place of the royal sepul- 
chre, beside the most illustrious of their monarchs. (B. C. 
698.) 

In the reign of Hezekiah, commentators place the pro- 
phecy of Nahum ; for no date being prefixed, it can only 
be ascertained by internal evidence, and by a comparison 
of one portion of history with another. Bishop Lowth, a 
most accomplished critic on Hebrew poetry, pronounces 
the book of Nahum " a complete and perfect poem, of 
which the conduct and imagery are truly admirable." In 
the first chapter, after celebrating, in lofty terms, the pow- 
er, and the justice, and the mercy of Jehovah, he promises 
deliverance to Hezekiah from the Assyrians, who, having 
put an end to the kingdom of Israel, now menaced that of 
Judah. Then, turning to Nineveh, he denounces the ruin of 
" the bloody city," which is all full of lies and robbery — 
" whose merchants were multiplied as the stars of heaven." 
" It shall come to pass," cries the prophet, " that all they 
that look upon thee, shall flee from thee, and say — Nine- 
veh is laid waste ; who will bemoan her?" 

In Hezekiah's reign, we had the refreshing spectacle of 
an excellent son succeedino; a most unw^orthv father. The 



MANASSEH AND AMON. 277 

picture is now reversed, and we are lo behold all the glo- 
ries of his wisdom, and the monuments of his piety, pros- 
trated by a degenerate successor. Manasseh not only went 
beyond the excesses of all the former kings of Judah, but 
is said to have done " worse than the heathens" who had 
been extirpated for their sins ; filling Jerusalem, in the pro- 
digality of his wickedness, with the blood of those who 
refused to comply with his detestable requisitions. Amongst 
these meritorious martyrs, the murder of the venerable 
Isaiah is believed to have cried aloud for vengeance on 
the polluted land. 

The inspired records inform us, that Isaiah prophesied 
more than sixty years, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, 
Ahaz, and Hezekiah ; but leave us ignorant of the time 
of his death. Traditions, which are credited by respect- 
able commentators, represent him to have "been sawn 
asunder," by Manasseh, whose guilt was aggravated 
beyond measure, by the circumstance of being the son-in- 
law of this inspired teacher ! 

Charles, Dear mother, I almost fear to ask, what dread- 
ful punishment was inflicted on such a monster? 

Mother. Chains and captivity in Babylon, were his re- 
compense — a recompense more lenient than he had earn- 
ed ; but deep repentance, in his dungeon, procured his par- 
don and restoration to Jerusalem ; where he reigned thirty- 
four years afterwards, sincerely endeavouring, by the 
most religious care of his people, to atone for his crimes. 
Yet he could not obliterate the sad traces of memory : for 
when " he slept with his fathers," he was refused a place 
in the " sepulchre of the kings," — an honour awarded only 
to the most virtuous of the race. 

Amon imitated the vices of his father Manasseh, but 
did not profit by the example of his consequent sufferings. 
Happily, his power was of short duration ; for he was cut 
off by some of his servants, when he had worn the crown 
of Judah but two years. These conspirators were imme- 
diately put to death by the people : but whether they had 
at this time, sufficient virtue to revolt from the murder of 
their king — or, whether his life was precious, because he 
gratified their idolatrous inclinations, we are not informed, 
24 



278 REIGN OF JOSIAH- 

The providential incident however, which made way for 
the succession of Josiah, was a great blessing to the 
nation. 

This young prince in his childhood evinced the most 
estimable disposition. He was but eight years of age 
when he was proclaimed king, — at twelve he commenced 
the destruction of every remnant of irreligion, which 
Manasseh had neglected or Amon had revived ; and in 
his eighteenth year, he proceeded with the greatest dili- 
gence and ardour to repair and purify the sacred temple. 

Fanny. With what pleasure would he have listened to 
the instruction of such a preceptor as the sublime Isaiah, 
had he remained till his day ! 

Mother. That deficiency, however, was made up to him 
by Jeremiah, who was called to the prophetic ofRce, in the 
thirteenth year of Josiah's reign, and continued his exhor- 
tations from that time to the final dissolution of the state. 

Whilst the ministers of the temple were assiduously 
engaged in searching all the chambers of that immense 
structure, that every pollution might be banished, a;id 
every part undergo the complete renovation commanded 
by the king, Hilkiah, the high priest, laid his hand acci- 
dentally on the original copy of the law, which ought 
always to have been kept beside the ark ; but had, pro- 
bably, been put out of sight, into some remote corner, to 
preserve it from the exterminating fury of some one of 
their idolatrous kings. 

Such was the degeneracy of the Israelites at this period 
of their history, that the king himself, who, at his coro- 
nation, was directed to this book,* as the law by which he 
was to govern, seems to have been, in a great measure, 
ignorant of its contents : for when the secretary, or scribe, 
who was sent with the newly-found treasure, was reading 
it, in his presence, the penalties denounced upon transgres- 
sors threw him into the utmost consternation ! Rending 
his clothes with the liveliest expressions of terror and 
grief, he sent directly to a prophetess, wife to the keeper 
of the wardrobe of the temple, to inquire how he might 

* See Deut. xvii. 18, 19. 



REIGN OF JOSIAH. 279 

avert the wrath that was threatened in the book that had 
been found, and which he now feared would be poured out 
upon himself and his people, because " their fathers" had 
not obeyed its injunctions. " Go," returned Huldah, " and 
tell the man that sent you to me: Thus saith the Lord — I 
will bring evil upon this plajce, and upon the inhabitants 
thereof, even all the words of the book which the king of 
Judah hath read, because they have forsaken me, and 
burned incense unto other gods. But to the king of Judah 
v/hich sent you to inquire of the Lord, thus shall ye say 
to him — Because thy heart was tender, and thou hast hum- 
bled thyself before the Lord, when thou heardest what I 
spake against this place, and the inhabitants thereof, that 
they should become a desolation and a curse, and hast 
rent thy clothes, and hast wept before me, / also have 
heard thee ! saith the Lord— thou shalt be gathered into 
thy grave in peace, and thine eyes shall not see the evil 
that I will bring upon this place." 

The effect of this gracious promise to the young prince, 
was not such as might have been expected in a youth, the 
possessor of a sceptre, and not more than twenty years of 
age. It did not lull him into indolent security ; but rather 
animated him to greater activity in the service of his 
beneficent Judge. Without delay, he summoned the in- 
habitants of Judah " both great and sm.all," to appear at 
the temple, and there, surrounded by the Elders, and the 
Levites, he read aloud the whole " book of the covenant," 
then, himself giving the example, he required them to re- 
new their engagement " to keep these commandments, 
with all their heart and all their soul." 

Fanny. The temple, though very large, certainly could 
not contain all the inhabitants of Judah. 

Mother, It is not reasonable to suppose that the whole 
population is intended in this passage. The words " great 
and small" may apply to different classes. The heads 
only of families might attend on this interesting occasion, 
a multitude of whom might hear while the speaker stood 
in a portico of the building. 

When this solemn ceremony was finished, the work of 
reformation proceeded with unremitting ardour, and the 
demolition, which Manasseh, afler his restoration, had but 



280 REIGN OF JOSIAII. 

begun, was completed. Indeed, when we see the extent 
and variety of the monuments of their devotion to idolatry 
— altars to the sun and moon, and chariots and horses in 
honour of the sun, erected at the very " entrance of the 
house of the Lord," we are prepared for the awful catas- 
trophe which approached, and only wonder that it was 
suspended so long ! 

The books of the Chronicles and Kings, relate many 
curious particulars of all these vicissitudes in Israel, v» hich 
I pass over without notice. One remarkable event, how- 
ever, of this period, I must not omit, because you are de- 
sirous to see the fulfilment of prophecies. In their jour- 
ney through the provinces, the king himself taking the 
round with the priests whom he had appointed to go 
throughout the land, and remove every emblem of false 
worship, the sepulchres of the priests, whom Jeroboam 
had sacrilegiously consecrated, at Bethel, " of the lowest 
order of the people," were discovered, and the altar on 
which they had burned incense, was yet standing. This 
was several ages after the prophecy which I related to 
you in the life of Jeroboam. Josiah was ignorant of the 
prediction, which had even mentioned him by name ; but, 
in order to give a signal instance of his utter abhorrence 
of idolatry, he ordered the bones to be brought out of the 
sepulchre, and burnt upon the altar, thereby pollvting it 
in the grossest manner, before it was destroyed. — Thus 
was that prophecy fulfilled to the very letter. Turning, 
accidentally, he saw another place of burial, having an 
inscription on the front, and inquired of his attendants 
what it meant. " This," they replied, " is the sepulchre 
of the man of God, which came from Judah, and pro- 
claimed these things that thou hast done against the altar 
of Bethel !" ''Let him alone," said the king, "let no man 
move his bones." From Josiah's taking this circuit through 
the land of Israel^ it appears that he had some authority 
beyond the ancient dominions of Judah. Some Israelites 
yet lingered in their beloved land, although the great mass 
of the nation had been carried into Assyria, and these, 
perhaps, submitted to his sway. 

All Judah, and every part of Israel, to which the per- 
severing king had access, being thoroughly cleared of 



CEATII OF JO&xAH. 281 

pagan altars, and images, and groves, and high places, a 
passover was held, at the legal season, which for pomp 
and solemnity, exceeded all that had been celebrated since 
the days of Samuel. 

From the time of this passover in the eighteenth year 
of Josiah's reign, we have no account of his actions until 
the thirty-first ; when his life was unhappily terminated 
by his imprudent opposition to the king of Egypt. There 
is every reason for believing that his administration was 
always upright. 

In this interval the Modes and Babylonians having veri- 
fied the prediction of the Jewish Seers,* by the destruction 
of Nineveh, Babylon, its ancient rival, became " the queen 
of the east" — the sole metropolis of Assyria, and the cen- 
tre of political power. The neighbouring states beheld 
the colossal empire v/ith dismay, and Necho, the king of 
Egypt, resolved to check its grovv^ing greatness by seizing 
on Carchemish, a considerable city on a branch of the 
Euphrates. The route of the Egyptians lying through 
the dominions of Josiah, that monarch, either indignant at 
the march of a foreign army through his empire, or ac- 
tuated by a sense of obligation to Assyria, by whose 
clemency the eastern provinces had been held since the 
restoration of Manasseh, took the fatal resolution to oppose 
their progress, and unhappily perished in the attempt. 
Unhappily, indeed, for his country — for the glory of Judah 
expired with the last of her religious kings. 

The loss of this excellent prince was deeply felt by the 
whole nation, whose mourning was so great and universal, 
that " the mourning of E[adadrimmon"f the place where 
he received the wound of which he died, became a national 
phrase' to express the greatest excess of sorrow. The 
prophet Jeremiah, especially, who had found in Josiah at 
once the pious pupil and the princely protector, foreseeing 
the evils which his successors would bring upon their 
people, and the train of calamities which awaited them, 
lamented his death in a pathetic elegy, which he composed 

* Especially Nahum and Zephaniah — see Newton on the Prophe- 
cies, vol. i. p. 149. 

t Hadadriminon, in the valley of Megiddo. 
21* 



^62 JERUSALEM TAKEN BY NECHO- 

for the public singers ; and it continued to be sung for ages 
in commemoration of his extraordinary virtues. 

Catherine, Is it not that beautiful strain which is called 
the Lamentations of Jeremiah? 

Mother, Some commentators are of that opinion , 
others suppose that on Josiah to be lost ; and this which 
remains, to refer rather to the general desolation of their 
country, which is as clearly and particularly foretold in 
this mournful song as it is in his prophecies. * The former 
opinion, however, may well be supported in the considera- 
tion of the vast importance of the life of Josiah to the wel- 
fare of the state, and the very different characters of his 
sons, who were to disgrace a throne which he had sur- 
rounded with splendour. 

Jehoahaz, his son, had worn the crown but three months, 
when Necho, returning elated with success from his expe- 
dition against Carchemish, and deriving a pretext from the 
hostihty of the late king, despatched a party from Riblah 
in Syria into Judah, seized Jehoahaz, loaded him with 
chains, and sent him to Egypt, where he ended his life ' 
Proceeding then himself to Jerusalem, he exacted a tribute 
m gold and silver of the people, and set Eliakim, a brother 
of the late king, upon the throne, and changed his name to 
Jehoiakim. 

Charles. I do not see how the poor Israelites, so con- 
tinually drained by their enemies, were yet able to bear 
such enormous impositions. 

Mother. The public treasury was often exhausted : it 
seems now not to have been in a very flourishing state, for 
this tribute was raised by a rigorous taxation of all the in- 
habitants of the land. 

The new king was altogether destitute of the talents and 
virtues of his father : the people returned to their accus- 
tomed vices, and the prophets admonished them in vain. 
Habakkuk flourished at this time, and declared the sad 
consequences of their sins in the most affectinor terms. 
Jeremiah, especially, was commanded to go to the palace 
and remind the king that his father acted uprightly, "there- 
fore it was well with him"— and tell him, that unless he 
also did execute justice and judgment," " and deliver the 
spoiler out of the hands of the oppressor, that he should 



Jeremiah's mission. 283 

be led away captive and see his native country no more;" 
and afterwards to go into the temple, and declare to the 
hollow-hearted worshippers the judgments which their vio- 
lence and injustice, their oppression of the stranger, the 
widow, and the orphan, their contempt of the Sabbath, 
their covetousness and pride, were bringing down upon the 
land — intreating them to repent, and receive mercy and 
pardon whilst yet it was offered. But so long as they 
v/ere not charged with profaning the sanctuary, by setting 
up idols in the place of Jehovah, the priests considered 
immorality but a venial crime, and quickly pronounced a 
sentence on the man who had dared to devote that august 
edifice to destruction. Undaunted, however, by their men- 
aces, he told them he was in their hands, and they might 
do as it pleased them to him, — " but know ye for certain," 
added he, " that if ye put me to death ye shall bring inno- 
cent blood upon your heads, and upon this city ; for of a 
truth Jehovah hath sent me unto you to speak all these 
words in your ears." " Therefore, now amend your ways, 
and obey the voice of the Lord your God, and he will re- 
pent him of the evil that he hath pronounced against you." 
Several princes and elders, who, (fortunately for the pro- 
phet,) were present, interposed in his behalf, although about 
the same time they united with the reprobate king in bring- 
ing back another prophet from Egypt, whither he had fled 
for security, and put him to death for having declared the 
same things ! 

Nor was this faithful minister contented with revealing 
these general indications of the wrath of heaven against 
this obdurate people ; but with a solicitude for his coun- 
trymen, more ardent as they became more callous to his 
pathetic exhortations, and more obstinate in their sins, he 
told them that Jehoiakim, their king, should die w^ithout 
pity, "and be cast forth beyond the gates of Jerusalem," 
without respect to his exalted rank, or the common de- 
cency of a grave : and, moreover, that his successor, with 
all his family, should be carried away to Babylon, and all 
Judah go into captivity. Nevertheless, that the purposes 
of Providence, in the preservation of that " peculiar people," 
might be answered, he comforted the faithful few with the 
assurance that they should never be scattered amongst the 



284 JERUSALEM TAKEN BY NEBUCHADNEZZAR. 

nations, to the total destruction of their name, but return 
to their own land after seventy years of correction for their 
sins. 

Fanny, Did all this make no impression on the har- 
dened monarch or his court? 

Mother, No other than to provoke them to imprison 
the courageous prophet, on the accusation of favouring the 
king's enemies, and disheartening the people from defend- 
ing the city against Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, 
who, by the death of his father, had fallen heir to a vast 
empire, containing Chaldea, Assyria, Syria, and Palestine,* 
and having extended his conquests, and beaten the king of 
Egypt, was now invading Judea. 

Catherine. The prophecies of Jeremiah and Isaiah, 
particularly, containing a great many separate predictions, 
could not all be delivered to the people at large : by what 
means, then, did they become acquainted with them 

Mother, After they had been orally delivered, the 
prophet himself wrote a copy, and put it up at a public 
gate of the temple, for the inspection of every passenger. 
Whilst Jeremiah was in prison, he was commanded by 
God to collect all that he had delivered from the com- 
mencement of his ministry, and copy them into one roll. 
Having done this, he sent Baruch, a scribe, to read it to 
the whole assembled people, on the annual day of atone- 
ment. The following year the city was taken, the temple 
plundered, and great numbers of people were, sent off to 
Babylon, amongst whom were several princes of the royal 
family. The king himself was put in irons, but released 
on his promise of fidelity to Nebuchadnezzar. 

With the captives, an order was sent to Babylon to se- 
lect some of the most intelligent and handsome youths for 
the personal service of the king, and immediately to 
commit them to masters of the laws and language of the 
Chaldees, that they might be qualified for their distin- 
guished lot. 

The famous Daniel, and his companions Hananiah, 
Mishael, and Azariah, more familiar to us under the 
names they received from their conquerors, of Shadrach, 

* Prideaux, vol. I. p. 52. 



Jeremiah's roll burned. 285 

Meshech, and Abednego, were amongst the favoured scho- 
lars. 

These events occurred in the fourth year of Jehoiakim. 
The king being now a vassal to the crown of Babylon, 
his princes carried into slavery, his dominions under 
tribute, and other circumstances corresponding with Jere- 
miah's prediction of the seventy years' captivity of Judah, 
have decided some of our best chronologers to date its 
commencement from this first capture of the city by Nebu- 
chadnezzar. 

Catherine, Did the prophet himself so explain these 
events to the king ? 

Mother, It does not appear that he did ; but he conti- 
nued his entreaties with both people and prince, to " turn 
every one from his evil way," and avert the wrath of hea- 
ven from their afflicted country. And when we read over 
the eloquent pleadings of Jeremiah, to us they seem resist- 
less. But the corrupt habits of the Jews were too deeply 
rooted to be changed. They were willing, however, to pay 
^ pi'ice for their darling indulgences, and accordingly ap- 
pointed a solemn fast, to deplore their calamities. The in- 
defatigable pastor, now liberated from his prison, took ad- 
vantage of another season of apparent humiliation, — and 
when a great concourse of persons were assembled, he 
sent Baruch up to the temple to read a second time pub- 
licly, the awful judgments which threatened their devoted 
land, and the merciful invitations to return to their hea- 
venly Father. Neither the king nor his councillors were 
present, but they were speedily informed of what was pass- 
ing in the court of the temple : the latter were alarmed, 
and, summoning the orator into their chamber, respectfully 
listened whilst he read the roll, and then advised him to 
conceal himself, together v/ith the prophet, until they should 
try its effect upon the monarch. 

It would seem hardly possible that Jehoiakim should yet 
be unmoved, by what had already come to pass, and the 
yet more frightful aspect of the future. But so it was ; — 
hastening on his own ruin, indignation alone was excited, 
and the sacred roll was committed to the flames by the 
hands of Jehoiakim himself, and an order immediately is- 
sued for the apprehension of Jeremiah and his secretary ; 



286 JEII0IAKI2I SLAIN ZEDEKIAH CROWNED. 

but, already concealed by their friends, they escaped from 
his meditated violence. 

The burning of the roll was but an a<?c^ravation of Je- 
hoiakim's guilt. To us the loss is repaired by a second 
copy, dictated by the prophet and written by his secretary, 
containing the same words, and also much additional mat- 
ter. This second roll was laid up with the national ar- 
chives, and is that book of Jeremiah which has been handed 
down to us. 

Notwithstanding all these convincing evidences of his 
impending fate, the king of Judah continued to harden 
himself in iniquity, and in three years provoked Nebu- 
chadnezzar to send another army against Judea, which 
harassed him for three years. Jehoiakim w^as at length 
slain, and his dead body contemptuously cast out of the 
city gates without burial, after a turbulent and inglorious 
reign of eleven years ; thus fulfilling, literally, the pro- 
phecy of Jeremiah."^' 

Jehoiachin, his son, ascending the throne, and the city 
still more closely besieged, after having been three short 
months amused with the semblance of a crown, he was 
compelled to take leave of his palace and deliver himself 
up, with his mother, his princes, and his servants, to the 
conqueror, whence he was carried in chains to Babylon. 
On this second capture of Jerusalem, the palace and tem- 
ple were despoiled of their treasures, many of the golden 
vessels were seized and cut in pieces, and all the nobility, 
the army, and artificers, to the number of eighteen thou- 
sand persons (three thousand having been sent out of the 
country before the fall of the city), w^ere carried away, 
leaving only the meaner classes of the people. (B. C. 
699.) Over this miserable remnant, Mattaniah, the uncle 
of the late king, was constituted a sort of chief, with the 
empty title of king, and his name was changed to Zede- 
kiah. This name, signifying the justice of the Lord, was 
designed to keep him in mind of the vengeance that w^ould 

* " In the last year of Jehoiakim*s reign was born Cyrus, the fa- 
mous founder of the Persian monarchy, and the restorer of the Jews 
to tlieir country, their temple, and their state." — Prideaux, 



JEREMIAH PKOPHECIES. 297 

follow his violation of the oath which had bound him a 
vassal to Babylon. 

Catherine. What became of the prophet Jeremiah — 
was he included in this sad deportation of the principal 
men of Jerusalem 1 

Mother, He was still left by Providence to serve an 
unworthy master. The Babylonians having left Jerusa- 
lem, a deputation came from several neighbouring kings, 
all tributaries of the great Nebuchadnezzar, to engage 
Zedekiah in a revolt from that monarch. Whereupon, 
Jeremiah was commanded to make *' yokes and bands," 
and send them by the ambassadors, to their several mas- 
ters, commanding them to say, when they delivered these 
expressive emblems, that " the Lord of the whole earth 
had given their dominions to the king of Babylon" — that 
submission would be beneficial to their people — but, on 
the contrary, revolt v/ould involve them in utter ruin. 
And by the same arguments- he persuaded the king of 
Judah not to listen to those who would but hasten his de- 
struction. 

Catherine, Of what use was the advice of Jeremiah 
to idolaters unacquainted with the Supreme Being in whose 
name he addressed them ? 

Mother, It did not, indeed, produce obedience to his 
commands ; but these divine messages, together with their 
continual intercourse with the Jews, were calculated to 
show them the difference between their graven images and 
the supreme Jehovah, and left them without excuse when 
the predictions were fuKilled. 

A messenger from Zedekiah to the king of Babylon, in 
the second year of his reign, afforded an opportunity to 
the active and benevolent Jeremiah to write to his unhappy 
countrymen, expostulating with them on the folly with 
which they had listened to those who falsely prophesied a 
speedy restoration to their own land ; assuring them, the 
appointed seventy years would not be diminished, and ad- 
vising them to consider themselves as settled inhabitants 
in the dominions of the conqueror, and ameliorate their de- 
plorable misfortune as well as they could, by application to 
business and obedience to the laws. 



288 DECEIT OP THE ISRAELITES. 

And farther to console them in their present sufferings, 
and give them confidence in his advice, in the fourth year 
of Zedekiah, he wrote that ample prediction of the fall of 
their oppressors by the Medes and Persians, which we 
have in the fifty-first chapter of Jeremiah ; and sent it into 
Babylon, with a charge to the messenger to read it pub- 
licly, on the bank of the Euphrates, and then binding it 
to a stone, to cast it into the river, — denoting by this sig- 
nificant action, that so Babylon should sink, to rise no 
more. 

In the fifth year of Zedekiah, the miserable captives 
were comforted by an eminent prophet amongst themselves, 
EzEKiEL, who had been carried from Jerusalem with king 
Jehoiachin. He was this year commissioned to preach re- 
signation to his countrymen — and to promise to the peni- 
tent, a return to their own land. The subsequent fall of 
Jerusalem, the dreadful end of Zedekiah, and the utter de- 
solation of the whole land of Israel, were revealed to Eze- 
kiel, about this time. 

The utter ruin of Judah being the determined object of 
the insatiable Nebuchadnezzar, in the ninth year of Zede- 
kiah's reign, Jerusalem was again menaced by another 
Babylonish army. The inhabitants, in great consterna- 
tion, made a show of repentance by a partial reformation 
of the abuses in which they had long indulged. 

The near prospect of servitude to themselves, now 
brought them to reflect on the injustice they had exercised 
tow^ards their servants, whom they had detained beyond 
the seventh year, the time of release prescribed by the 
Mosaic Law. In a moment of terror, these injured per- 
sons obtained the liberty to which they were entitled, and 
both the king and the people entered into a formal cove- 
nant* to revive the neglected institutions of their still vene- 
rated Legislator. But the apprehended siege being sus- 
pended awhile by the march of Nebuchadnezzar against 
the neighbouring princes, who, together with Zedekiah, 
had manifested a disposition to rebel against their tyrant, 
— no sooner was the pressure removed, than the liberated 

* A covenant was made by dividing an animal in two parts, and 
the covenanting- parties passing between the separated parts. 



JEREMIAH IMPRISONED. 289 

servants were again brought into bondage by their late 
masters. 

Once more the intrepid Jeremiah was commissioned by 
the Moral Governor of the world, to tell the hypocritical 
king, that for this gross act of perjury and oppression, in 
refusing liberty to their brethren — " liberty was proclaimed 
to the sword, to the pestilence, and to famine," — " that the 
king of Babylon should return, Zedekiah and his people 
be given into his hand, and their cities be burnt with fire, 
and remain without an inhabitant." 

Disheartened, at length, by the total insensibility of both 
king and people, and knowing that the evils he had been 
threatening for more than forty years, were now fast ap- 
proaching, the prophet determined to abandon them to 
their fate, and provide for his own safety by retiring to 
Anathoth, his native city. But, always obnoxious to the 
resentment of the people by the faithful discharge of his 
duty, his quiet departure was now made the pretext for 
seizing him as a deserter to the Chaldeans ; insulting him 
even with blows, and confining him in the house of one 
Jonathan, a scribe — which was at that time the common 
jail of Jerusalem. 

Charles, What do you mean by a scribe ? 

Mother, A scribe, in the commonwealth of Israel, was 
equivalent to a lawyer with us. They were the expound- 
ers of the law, and writers, as we see in the instance of 
Baruch, who wrote the prophecies from the dictation of 
Jeremiah. 

Before the conclusion of this ninth year of Zedekiah, 
the appearance of a Chaldean army before the walls of 
Jerusalem, convinced him of the wickedness and folly of 
wasting that time in the persecution of the prophet, which 
ought to have been employed in providing against an ene- 
my whose perseverance and power he had already expe- 
rienced. The city was rigorously besieged — provisions 
soon became scarce — and the terrified king, whom no ar- 
gument could move, whilst he wickedly believed himself 
secure, had Jeremiah brought from the prison, to try whe- 
ther he would yet soothe his apprehensions by prophesying 
" smooth things." 
25 



J390 ezekiel's prophecies. 

The divine oracle varied not — Zedekiah was to fall into 
the hands of the king of Babylon : but adversity, which is 
seen to soften the most obdurate, inclined him to listen to 
the entreaty of the prophet not to remand him to the com- 
mon jail of felons ; he was therefore confined in the guard- 
house of the court — and allowed a daily portion from the 
scanty stock of bread which yet remained to flatter their 
delusive hope of resisting the mighty monarch with suc- 
cess. This favour, however, was withdrawn, when pesti- 
lence and famine spreading universal distress over the 
mourning streets of Jerusalem, he was again called upon 
for a word of hope and comfort from the Lord. No abate- 
ment or disguise of the unalterable decree being allowed — 
nor any alternative but to perish in the city, or to save 
their lives by going out and surrendering themselves to the 
besieger, the exasperated princes denounced their best 
friend, as an enemy to his country, who weakened the 
hands of her defenders by his terrifying predictions, and 
threw him into a deep and noisome dungeon, where he 
must have perished inevitably, but for the compassion of 
one of the king's servants, who obtained for him the pri- 
vilege of a transfer to his former prison. 

Whilst the holy city was in this miserable state, Eze- 
kiel, in Babylon, declared the judgment of God against the 
proud city of Tyre, for exulting in the calamities of his 
fallen people, not less than for their own luxury and pride, 
and foretold the same destruction to them, from the same 
unrelenting hand. 

About this time, another triumph was revealed to Eze- 
kiel — the entire conquest and desolation of Egypt — Egypt, 
one of the most ancient and celebrated of nations, the cra- 
dle of learning, yet the nursery of superstition and idola- 
try the most monstrous, that ever debased the known 
world, or exhibited the weakness of the human intellect. 

Catherine. Prophecy is a most interesting subject : 
whenever you speak of a prediction, I wait with impa- 
tience to hear of its accomplishment. 

Mother, The annals we are studying afford me many 
opportunities of gratifying your desire, as you have seen 
in many instances. In our brief view of the Jewish his- 
tory, I notice chiefly such prophecies as illustrate the lead- 



GEDALIAH PROTECTS JEREMIAH. 291 

ing fact — the constant and visible interposition of Provi- 
dence in the affairs of this remarkable nation. 

We left Zedekiah, the last descendant of David that ever 
wore a crown, in trembling apprehension of his impending 
fate. Deaf to the entreaties of Jeremiah, to throw him- 
self on the mercy of the conqueror, he persisted in de- 
fending Jerusalem about a year from the beginning of the 
siege. Their provisions being then exhausted, and the 
enemy in possession of one gate of the city, the despairing 
king collected his family and chief warriors, and attempted 
to escape towards Jordan by night, by a private way 
through his gardens. He was overtaken in the plains of 
Jericho, seized, and carried immediately to Riblah, where 
the king of Babylon then held his court. 

His rebellion and perseverance had exasperated the 
tyrant, and his obstinate contempt of the prophet's gra- 
cious messages left him nothing to hope. His sons, and 
his officers, were slain in his presence : his own eyes after- 
vrards being put out, he was sent to Babylon in chains, 
and ended his life in a prison ; circumstantially fulfilling 
the prediction of Ezekiel, that he should die in Babylon, 
though he should not see the place ! (B. C. 588.) 

The rage of the Chaldeans now fell on the holy city. 
The houses, the palaces, and walls were either burned, or 
levelled with the earth. Nor did their magnificent temple 
obtain more consideration. The silver, the brass, and the 
gold, that had been lavished in decoration, with every 
thing valuable that could be found, was carried away, and 
the sacred edifice itself was left a heap of ruins ! 

But these barbarians, who did not venerate the temple 
of Jehovah, paid much respect to his prophet Jeremiah, 
whilst they were either slaying or sending into captivity 
the inhabitants of both town and country. — Either mis- 
taking his advice to the fallen king, as an intended service 
to their master, or subdued by the majesty of his inflexible 
virtue, they obeyed the command of the heathen monarch 
to take him out of his prison — furnish him with neces- 
saries, and leave him at liberty to choose his own dwell- 
ing. If he would go into Babylon, he was promised suste- 
nance and protection — or if he chose to remain in his own 
country, he might at will select the place of his residence. 



292 GEDALIAH ASSASSINATED. 

His country, though in ruins, being preferred, he was sent 
to Gedaliah, who had been appointed governor of the van- 
quished land, with a charge to make the venerable sage 
the object of his particular care. 

Fanny, Of what use was a governor in a land stripped 
of its inhabitants 1 

Mother, The fertile fields of the " delightful land," were 
yet covered with grain : the famine which contributed to 
the ruin of the rebellious city, was occasioned by the strait- 
ness of the siege — not by the poverty of the country, 
although it had suffered by the ravages of a hostile army. 
The vine and the olive tree, yet yielded their fruit : and to 
gather these in their season, as many as were necessary 
of the meanest of the people, from whom Nebuchadnezzar 
apprehended no ambitious projects, were suffered to remain 
under the government of Gedaliah, who generously as- 
sured them of protection. But ambition, it would seem, 
will never want a place to imagine her mischievous 
schemes. Whilst the late war had more or less agitated 
the whole country, many of its inhabitants, together with 
small bands of the broken army of Zedekiah, had fled 
into the neighbouring states. Many of these, when they 
heard that the Chaldean troops had retired, and that a 
man of probity was appointed governor, returned to their 
homes, and promised allegiance to the king of Babylon. 
But unfortunately for them, a prince of the royal blood 
named Ishmael, who had taken refuge with the king of 
Ammon, a tributary likewise of Babylon, was encouraged 
by that prince, to obtain the supremacy of Judah, by the 
murder of Gedaliah. With this design he came with a 
number of the refugee officers, to visit the viceroy at 
Mizpah, where he had fixed his residence, affecting sub- 
mission to their ruler, and whilst they were courteously 
received and entertained at his table, the unsuspecting 
governor fell a victim to their treachery ! The chief num- 
ber of the people who had returned into Judah, being 
absent from Mizpah gathering the vintage, all who remain- 
ed about the person of Gedaliah, both Jews and Chaldeans, 
were also put to death. Instead however of prosecuting 
his claim to the crown, the fears of Ishmael now prompt- 
ed him to take all the women and children, amongst whom 



JEREMIAH DIES IN EGYPT. 293 

were the daughters of Zedekiah, who, in the confusion of 
his flight, had been separated from their father, and fly with 
his party into Egypt. Here, again, the aged Jeremiah 
was taken prisoner, and carried off* by the assassins, but 
before they had proceeded far on their march, they be- 
sought him to supplicate heaven in their behalf, solemnly 
declaring they would obey his directions. Nothing how- 
ever was less their intentions, for when they received in 
answer, a command to remain in their native country, and 
a promise of mercy and favour if they did so — they con- 
temptuously replied, that this was not the voice of Jehovah, 
for they had prospered when they burnt incense to " the 
queen of heaven," and therefore they would resort to her 
altars in Egypt. To Egypt therefore they went, taking 
the prophet along with them — but not without being told, 
that the impious idolatry they still cherished in their hearts, 
had brought upon them all the evils they lamented — that 
famine and the sword should not cease to visit them in 
Egypt, until they were humbled — and that Pharaoh him- 
self should be given into the hand of his enemies. 

From this descent into Egypt, Jeremiah is no more 
spoken of. That he died in Egypt, seems certain; for he 
was far advanced in years at this time. Profane au4:hors 
assert, that he was stoned to death by his countrymen, for 
troubling them with his preaching against their heathenish 
practices ; others impute his death to Pharoah, because he 
foretold the downfall of his kingdom. 

Thus the government of the Israelites was completely 
dissolved, about nine hundred years after they were col. 
lected into a nation by Moses ; and had possessed the 
" promised land" eight hundred and sixty years. 

From the time of this complete conquest of the Holy 
Land, this venerable people have never become, again, 
independent. The two tribes — those of whom we have 
last spoken, were restored to their country at the end of 
the appointed seventy years, as we shall see by and by. 
They were indulged with a subordinate government of 
their own : but they were subjected, successively, to the 
Babylonians, the Persians, the Macedonians — and lastly 
to the Romans. They are now, as well as their brethren, 
the Israelites, scattered throughout the world. 
25* 



( 294 ) 



DANIEL* 



Mother. Whilst their native country was thus falling 
into ruin, the Jewish captives Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, 
and Azariah, were advancing to eminence in Babylon. (B. 
C. 607.) They were selected from the principal families 
of Judah for the beauty of their persons, and educated for 
the personal service of the monarch. Their progress in 
the language and science of the Chaldees, together with 
the virtue and piety of their character, had obtained the 
respect of the officer who had them in charge — when the 
court was thrown into great agitation by a dream of 
Nebuchadnezzar's. 

Something of momentous aspect was impressed on his 
imagination while he slept — his repose was disturbed, but 
every trace of the vision had escaped ! In vain he en- 
deavoured to recall the portentous idea ; and in vain he 
demanded of his magicians, his astrologers, and his sorce- 
rers, at the peril of their lives, both the dream and its in- 
terpretation. Neither learning, nor fraud, bringing relief 
to their perilous condition, they ventured to remonstrate 
against the arbitrary requisition — professing humbly their 
readiness to interpret, if the dream itself were related to 
them. But it was gone — nor could the honours promised 
as the reward of their skill, induce them to venture on the 
dangerous project of invention, where the possible recol- 
lection of their master might detect the artifice and involve 
them in destruction. The mighty despot of Asia, accus- 
tomed to speak but to be obeyed, became furious by dis- 
appointment, and immediately issued an order to put all 
the wise men of Babylon to death ! 

* To preserve the chronological order of the history, we must here 
abandon the plan which has hitherto been pursued, of taking- the books 
as they are arranged in our bibles. It is obvious that even the chap- 
ters are, in a few instances, not disposed chronologically : for exam- 
ple, the seventh and eighth chapters of Daniel should precede the 
fifth and sixth. 



Nebuchadnezzar's dream. 295 

The high reputation of Daniel and his companions for 
wisdom, brought them within the merciless scope of the 
decree, nor did their virtues afford a plea of indemnity. 
But Providence, their director and shield, inspired Daniel 
with a pious hope of saving both the injured magicians 
and themselves. Time, therefore, to consider the king's 
demand, was requested of Arioch, the captain of the guard, 
who came to arrest them — and the request was granted. 
Their united prayers for divine illumination were answered 
— and Daniel was brought into the royal presence, to dis- 
sipate the harassing anxiety of Nebuchadnezzar. " Art 
thou able," demanded the imperious king, " to make known 
both the dream and the interpretation?" "No human 
penetration, O king !" replied the modest youth, " could 
discover thy dream ; but there is a God in heaven, the re- 
vealer of secrets, who has previously revealed it unto me 
— though not for any merit of my own, but for the benefit 
of others." 

Prefaced by the revelation of a fact distinctly remem- 
bered by the monarch, that before he slept, his mind had 
been ruminating on his conquests, and their bearing on 
the affairs of other kingdoms — his attention was obtained 
whilst the orator proceeded, with heavenly wisdom, to por- 
tray, in vivid lines, the faded vision. A splendid image, 
as in his dream, seemed to stand before the perturbed 
king. Formed of four different metals, each decreasing 
in value from the head of gold to the feet of iron — it was 
explained by Daniel to represent the kingdom of Babylon, 
transcendant in grandeur, or perhaps first in point of time, 
and three others,* inferior, which should successively 
arise in " the latter days." " And whilst in his dream he 
gazed on the mysterious image, a stone," continued the 
prophet, " was cut out without hands, which smote the 
image upon his feet which were of iron and clay, and 
broke them to pieces. Then was the iron, the clay, the 
brass, the silver and the gold, broken to pieces together, 
and became like the chaff of the summer threshing floors ; 
and the wind carried them away that no place was found 



* The Medo-Persian, or the Medes and Persians — the Macedonians 
— and the Romans. 



296 ADVANCEMENT OF DANIEL. 

for them, and the stone became a great mountain, and 
filled the whole earth." 

The mystical mountain, which Daniel interpreted to be 
a heavenly kingdom, which should " last forever," con- 
cerned the haughty monarch but little, whilst the head of 
gold represented himself, pre-eminent in splendour — "a 
king of kings, to whom the God of heaven had given pow- 
er, and strength, and glory." He was awed, indeed, in 
the midst of his exultation, and acknowledging the om- 
niscience of the God of Daniel, prostrated himself before 
his messenger, and commanded his servants to bring in- 
cense and offer it to him. Nor did he stop at these impious 
honours, but gave him great presents, and made him ruler 
of the whole province of Babylon. His friends, too, Me- 
shach, Shadrach, and Abednego, at the request of Daniel, 
were advanced to posts of honour in the provinces. 

Catherine. How did the proud Babylonians endure the 
advancement of their captives, whom they would very natu- 
rally hold in contempt ? 

Mother. They saw it with indignation and envy, no 
doubt, for we find them laying hold of an opportunity, af- 
forded by the vain glory of the monarch, soon after to ruin 
his new favourites. 

An inimense image of gold being set up by Nebuchad- 
nezzar, in the plain of Dura, and consecrated as an object 
of religious worship, with great ceremony, in the presence 
of all the nobles of Babylon, the royal proclamation com- 
manded his subjects, of all languages and nations, to fall 
down and reverence the golden image, whensoever they 
" should hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, 
psaltery, and dulcimer, and all kinds of music," on the 
penalty of being cast into a burning furnace. The unhappy 
Jews, who were ever prone to idolatry in the days of their 
prosperity, and had ever returned to their own omnipotent 
Jehovah in adversity, now completely cured of their pas- 
sion for the gods of the nations, were soon represented by 
their enemies as contemners of the royal proclamation ; 
particularly Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, as the 
most obnoxious amongst the captives, because they partook 
of the honours and emoluments of the state. Nebuchad- 
nezzar, the greatest potentate of the east, would not endure 



SHADRACH, MESHACH, AND ABEDNEGO. 297 

opposition to his will, yet with a show of justice to the ac 
cused, he commanded them to be brought mto his presence, 
and inquired of them if they had refused to worship the 
ima2;e he had set up, reminding them of the penalty, and 
defying the power of that God to whom they might look 
for deliverance. 

With the constancy of determined virtue, they answerea 
the king that they would bow down to no idol whatsoever, 
but if they must suffer for their religion, the God whom 
they served was able to deUver them ; and in him they 
would put their trust. This bold declaration provoked an 
immediate order to bind these three men hand and foot, 
and cast them into the furnace, heated seven times hotter 
than usual. The furious anger of the affronted king ad- 
mitted of neither palliation nor delay ; but what was his 
astonishment, and that of the princes and nobles who sur- 
rounded him, when they beheld the objects of their rage 
walking unhurt amidst the fiery furnace, and with them a 
figure of celestial brightness ! Subdued for a moment by 
a sentiment of mingled awe and terror, the mighty monarch 
advanced to the mouth of the furnace, exclaiming, " ye 
servants of the most high God, come forth and come 
hither."—" Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and 
Abednego, who hath sent his angel, and delivered his ser- 
vants that trusted in him." To this candid ascription, he 
added an edict, " That every people, nation, and language, 
which speak anything amiss against the God of Shadrach, 
Meshach, and Abednego, shall be cut in pieces, and their 
houses shall be made a dunghill, because there is no other 
God that can deliver after this sort." 

Fanny, It would seem scarcely worth while to ask 
whether Nebuchadnezzar was not now converted to the 
worship of one God? 

Mother, Not yet : for a proud heart, confirmed by an 
erroneous education, is strong enough to erect a barrier 
even against a miracle. But it is believed that the last 
event wliich is recorded of his life, aflecting him personally, 
made a permanent impression. 

Nebuchadnezzar, the greatest warrior of his age, was 
now the undisputed master of all Syria, Palestine, and 
Egypt, and the celebrated cities of Nineveh and Tyre 



298 Nebuchadnezzar's dream. 

having likewise submitted to his arms, the conqueror was 
in peace and at leisure to embellish and strengthen the me- 
tropolis of his great empire. The wonders of Babylon are 
more like fairy tales than reality, yet their existence is not 
questioned, for they are very particularly described by an- 
cient writers. You have read of the prodigious walls of 
Babylon, and her hanging gardens, which were amongst 
the wonders of the world, and have never been surpassed ; 
her canals, and her palaces, and her superb temple of Be' 
lus, in which were placed the sacred vessels obtained by 
the plunder of the sanctuary at Jerusalem. I will not de- 
tain you by repeating what has so often been described, 
but proceed to the fall of this great prince from the emi- 
nence on which he stood after all these great works were 
completed. 

About this time he is represented to himself in a dream, 
under the figure of a magnificent tree, high and extending, 
whose branches afforded provision and shade for every 
creature under heaven ! Whilst he gazed on the tree, he 
saw in his dream " a watcher and an holy one come down 
from heaven," and command the destruction of the tree and 
the dispersion of the beasts and the fowls that reposed un- 
der its shadow, or had their dwelling in its branches. " Ne- 
vertheless" continued the angel, " leave the stump of his 
roots in the earth, and let it be wet with the dew of heaven, 
and let his portion be with the beasts in the grass of the 
earth. Let his heart be changed from man's, and let a 
beast's heart be given unto him ,• and let seven times pass 
over him. To the intent that the living may know that 
the Most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it 
to whomsoever he will, and setteth up over it the basest of 
men." The wise men, as on a former occasion, were sum- 
moned to relieve the consternation of the king — but none 
could interpret the portentous dream, until Daniel was called 
in. Inspired by a prescience unknown to the Chaldean im- 
postors, he saw the decree against Nebuchadnezzar, and 
would have declined an explanation ; but at length he told 
him that the tree represented himself, " whose greatness 
reached unto heaven and his dominion to the ends of the 
earth ;" that he was to be driven from the dwellino- of men, 



PUNISHMEKT OF NEBUCHADNEZZAR. 299 

to eat grass with the beasts of the field, until he should 
know that the Most High was the Supreme Ruler of king- 
doms. And whereas the stump being left in the earth was 
an intimation that he should return to his throne — Daniel 
ventured, in the conclusion, respectfully and affectionately 
to advise him to " repent of his sins, and show mercy to 
the poor," if he might perad venture avert the dread sen- 
tence. 

Nebuchadnezzar seems not to have been moved ; for at 
the end of the year, as he walked on a terrace, exulting in 
the splendour of his capital, and exclaiming, " Is not this 
great Babylon, which / have built by the might of my 
power, and for the honour of my majesty !" he was sud- 
denly berefl of his senses, and either wandered into the 
forests, or was driven out by his servants, who were proba- 
bly rejoiced to get rid of a master who had oppressed them 
to aggrandize himself. Seven years, however, he remained 
in the fields. His reason then returned, and he was re- 
stored to his throne, confessing that God the Most High 
was the Sovereign Disposer of kingdoms and the Ruler of 
the universe ! (B. C. 563.) 

Fanny, Did he not relapse into idolatry? 
Mother. We have no further account of Nebuchad- 
nezzar; but it is believed that he did not: for this story of 
his chastisement and repentance is given by his own hand, 
and he lived but one year afterwards ; having reigned forty- 
five years. 

Evil-merodach, the son of Nebuchadnezzar, succeeded to 
the throne of Babylon, of whose reign but one act is re- 
corded in Scripture. This was the liberation of the captive 
king of the Jews, Jehoiachim, from his prison, in the sixty- 
third year of his age. Thirty-seven years of confinement 
had probably rendered the unfortunate monarch indifferent 
to the pleasures and charities of life. Such, however, as 
Evil-merodach could give, he bestowed, — a seat at the table 
of his master, and an establishment suitable to his rank, 
together with the precedence of all other princes and nobles 
then at the court of Babylon. 

Catherine. By what motive was the new king induced 
to show so much kindness to a man who had been so in- 
humanly treated by his father? 



300 VISIONS OF DANIEL. 

Mother, Tradition ascribes it to his having contracted 
a friendship for the royal captive, whilst he was himself 
confined in the same prison by his sire. Sympathy, we 
know, is the very natural result of similar sufferings. The 
munificence of the king of Babylon to Jehoiachim was cer- 
tainly not the effect of his native disposition ; for historians 
describe him as so vile, that even his own relations con- 
spired with his subjects to put him to death when he had 
reigned but two years! 

The chief object of the Old Testament being to record 
the history of the Jews, that of other nations is mentioned 
but incidentally, as they were connected with that most 
favoured people. 

The reign, therefore, of one king of Babylon, occupy- 
ing four or ^Ye years after the death of Evil-merodach, is 
passed over without notice, and the story of Daniel is re- 
sumed in the reign of Belshazzar, the grandson of Nebu- 
chadnezzar. 

In the first year of Belshazzar, the revolutions of em- 
pires, which had been revealed to Nebuchadnezzar, under 
the emblem of a great image of various metals, was re- 
peated to Daniel in a dream, under the similitude of four 
wild beasts, denoting by their different dispositions the 
prevailing characters of the several nations which should 
subvert and succeed one another. 

Again, in the third year of Belshazzar, the conquest of 
the mighty empire of Babylon by the Persians, and the 
subsequent dominion of Alexander the Great, were ex- 
hibited in a vision to Daniel, as he walked in one of the 
royal palaces at Shushan, beside the river Ulai."^ (B. C. 
553.) " So likewise Ezekiel saw visions by the river of 
Chebary^^ observes Bishop Newton, " as if the holy spirit had 
delighted to manifest itself in such retired scenes : and the 
gifts and the graces of the spirit are often, in scripture lan- 
guage, described by the metaphors of springs and streams 
of water, than which nothing was more agreeable and re- 
freshing in hot and dry countries.'' 



* See Newton on the Prophecies, vol. i. p. 283., where the reader 
will find a full exposition of the visions of Daniel. 



THE WRITING ON THE WALL. 301 

That Daniel was still in the royal service appears from 
the effects which he says, in his account of these astonish- 
ing visions, especially the latter, were produced by them. 
It is said that he fainted, became sick, and was unable to 
attend to the " king's business" for some days. 

But Belshazzar, devoted to his pleasures, whilst the con- 
duct of the state was directed by Nitocris, his mother, a 
lady of superior wisdom and courage, was unacquainted 
with the value of his minister. A war with the Persians 
was bequeathed to him by his father, and was conducted 
by the queen-mother with great spirit, during the whole 
reign of Belshazzar. Babylon at length, a city impreg- 
nable as it seemed from its stupendous fortifications — 
Babylon itself, was besieged by the celebrated Cyrus — and 
the time was at hand when the judgments denounced by 
the prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah, Flabakkuk, and Daniel, 
were to overwhelm it. Human prudence or power, in the 
balance against these, were but as chaff before the wind! 
The impious prince, however, as confident as careless, 
made a splendid entertainment for his nobles on an annual 
festival, and profanely decorated his tables with the sacred 
vessels of gold from the temple. Whilst they revelled in 
fearless security, a mysterious hand appeared against the 
wall opposite to the seat of Belshazzar, and recorded upon 
it, at once, his reproof and his punishment. All were 
chilled with amazement, but none could decypher the 
writing ! The wise men were called, but their arts were 
ineffectual ! At this crisis the dismay of the assembly wask 
suspended by the entrance of the dowager queen. Atten- 
tive as she had been to the affairs of the empire, she had 
become acquainted with the singular endowments of Daniel, 
and novv^ hastened to inform the king, that he who had 
been called Belteshazzar, and had been honoured " because 
the spirit of the holy gods was in him, and because he had 
wisdom and knowledge in understanding visions and '' hard 
sentences," was able to interpret the hand- writing. Daniel 
was then brought in, and entreated with the offer of dis- 
tinguished honours to unfold the inscription exhibited on 
the wall. Give thv rewards to another, replied the un- 
ambitious prophet—'' yet I will read the writing to the 
26 



802 BABYLON TAKEN. 

king, and make known the interpretation." Reverting then 
briefly to the splendid reign of Nebuchadnezzar, the Idng's 
ancestor, and the sad catastrophe which his wanton abuse 
of the gifts of the Most High, had brought upon him — the 
intrepid monitor continued, " thou, O Belshazzar, hast not 
humbled thine heart, though thou knewest all these things, 
but hast lifted up thyself against the Lord of Heaven, and 
hast brought the vessels of his house before thee, and hast 
drunk wine out of them, and hast praised the gods of gold 
and silver, which see not, nor hear, nor know, and the 
God in whose hand thy breath is, and whose are all thy 
ways, hast thou not glorified." " Then was the hand sent 
from him, and this is the interpretation. God hath num- 
bered thy kingdom and finished it. Thou art weighed in 
the balances, and found wanting. Thy kingdom is divided 
and given to the Modes and Persians." 

Charles, It is wonderful that Daniel had courage to de- 
clare such a terrible sentence. He might be sure that a 
wicked and despotic king would be more ready to punish, 
than to give him the rewards he had ofl!ered. 

Mother. Mere animal spirits, my son, do often enable 
men to perform the most perilous deeds. But the courage 
of Daniel was sustained by the Power who communicated 
the knowledge. Whether Belshazzar had some conviction 
of this truth, or whether h*e considered himself pledged by 
a royal promise, he did keep his word. Daniel was in- 
stantly arrayed in gold and scarlet, and proclaimed the 
third ruler in the empire. But Belshazzar was not spared 
like his grand-father, to be purified in the ordeal of afflic- 
tion — for in that very night the Persians entered Babylon, 
and he was slain ! 

Anticipating the unguarded riotings of this festal day 
when the Babylonians were known to indulge in intemper- 
ance, the sagacious Cyrus had turned off the course of 
the river Euphrates, which ran through the city into a 
canal, and now entered with his army by its exhausted 
channel.* (B. C. 540.) 

* This catastrophe occurred just fifty years after the destructiom 
of Jerusalem ; and here ended the independence of the Babyloniam 



ELEVATION OF DANIEL. 303 

Catherine, Mother, you have given the conquest of 
Babylon to Cyrus — whereas, it is said in our Bibles, that 
" the kingdom was taken by Darius, the Mede." 

Mother, The affairs of the heathens, as I lately remark- 
ed, being mentioned incidentally in the history of the Jews, 
such notices will often be obscure, and sometimes, to care- 
less readers, may seem even contradictory. We must 
therefore look to profane authors for aid ; and it is a great 
satisfaction, that we can at all times receive their expla- 
nation without impeaching the veracity of the Scriptures. 
In this instance, I have told you from them, that Babylon ^ 
was taken by Cyrus. He was the son of the king of ' 
Persia, and the nephew of Cyaxares or Darius the Mede, 
as he is also called; for several names were often given 
to princes, in the East. Cyrus commanded the forces of 
Persia, confederated with the Modes, and was the conquer- 
or of Babylon ; but, being a prince of great excellence 
and modesty, he assumed nothing to the honour of his 
own name, but placed all his conquests to that of his uncle 
Cyaxares. 

The dominions of Darius being now greatly enlarged, 
he divided them into one hundred and twenty provinces, 
each having its governor, — and over the whole, three presi- 
dents. The wisdom and integrity of Daniel having been 
proved, during more than sixty years that he had been 
employed by the court of Babylon, were so highly esteem- 
ed that he was advanced to the first rank of the three. 
But envy, which respects not superiority of talents or vir- 
tue, was soon at work to undermine Daniel in the favour 
of the new prince. Invulnerable in his public character, 
his religion presented a point which might perhaps be at- 
tacked with success. Flattered with this hope, the malici- 
ous courtiers applied to the king for a law, recommended, 

empire. The time had been foretold by Jeremiah. " It shall come 
to pass when seventy years are accomplished, that I will punish the 
king of Babylon." The magnificent city suffered considerably at 
this time, and the country was inundated by the new course of the 
river : so that here we may fix the beginning of that utter desolation 
to which they were devoted — and which was subsequently completed. 
See Prideaux, vol. i. p. 150. 



304 DANIK* IN THE LIOXs' DEN. 

as they told him, unanimously by the nobles, to prohibit 
every man in his realm from making any petition, save 
only to the king, for the term of thirty days ; on pain of 
being cast into a den of lions. Accustomed as were the 
princes of the East to the most excessive adulation, the 
unsuspecting Darius accepted the impious compliment, and 
put his signet to the edict : but v/hat was his horror when 
he discovered the real object of his wicked ministers, in 
their speedy information that Daniel, the first president, 
conte^mning his authority, persisted in offering petitions to 
his God, every day ; and was thereby obnoxious to the 
penalty of the law ! Deeply afnicted, that he had been thus 
ensnared to the ruin of his invaluable servant, the king 
made every effort in his power to save him ; but still press- 
ed by the enemies of Daniel, with the proverbial immuta- 
bility of the laws of the Medes and Persians, he was at 
last forced to behold him cast into the den of lions, and to 
put his own signet on the door — yet consoling both him- 
self and the venerable sufferer with the pious hope, that 
" the God whom he served, would deliver him from in- 
jury." After a night of sleepless anguish, the monarch 
hastened early in the morning to the den, and calling with 
a melancholy voice 'inquired of " the servant of the^living 
God — if the God whom he served was able to deliver him 
from the fury of the lions ?" The wonderful preservation 
of the prophet attested by his own tranquil answer — that 
his " God had shut the mouth of the lions," was received 
with great joy by Darius, who immediately committed the 
accusers of Daniel with their unfortunate* families to the 
hungry beasts, who had spared the innocent victim of 
their malice ; whilst he confessed the sovereign power of 
the Most High, in an edict commanding his subjects to 
fear and honour " the God of Daniel." 

Fanny. While individuals were in such high estimation 
with the kings of Babylon — how were the captive Israel- 
ites generally treated ? 

Mother, They seem to have been treated with lenity, 
for many of them amassed wealth, and they were allowed 
to observe their own laws so far as they were compatible 
with their subjection to a foreign prince, under a subordi- 



PROPHECIES OF DANIEL. 305 

nate o-overnment of their elders, the chief of whom was 
denominated " the Head of the Captivity." 

Darius the Mede enjoyed the throne of Babylon but a 
few years. Cambyses the king of Persia dying about the 
same time, the gallant Cyrus having married the princess 
of Media, united the two crowns, and became the monarch 
of the most extensive empire that had yet been erected in 
the eastern world. 

Charles, Did a change of rulers make a change in the 
fortunes of the prophet Daniel ? 

Mother. Each successive monarch seems rather to 
have treated him with additional respect. As an interpre- 
ter of dreams, he would naturally be venerated by a super- 
stitious people — and now his long experience in politics, 
together with his late miraculous deliverance from the lions, 
would recommend him to Cyrus as a counsellor pre-emi- 
nent in value, and one whose favour with heaven would 
invoke blessings on his government. 

The meridian of prosperity, however, which irradiated 
his own days, did not make him forgetful of the adverse 
condition of his brethren. Fervent and unceasing in his 
prayers for their deliverance, he was favoured in a vision 
with a view of the political revolutions in which they were 
interested ; and trusting implicitly in the word of Jeremiah, 
which had distinctly numbered seventy years as the term 
of their captivity, he became more earnest in his supplica- 
tion as the appointed time drew near. 

In the first year of Darius, he received that most re- 
markable prophecy of the seventy weeks, as it is called, 
which is recorded in the ninth chapter of his book — an ex- 
plicit promise of the restoration of the temple, and the 
advent of the Messiah — the rock which Nebuchadnezzar 
had seen " cut out of the mountain without hands." Indeed, 
all the prophecies of Daniel are so clear and circumstantial, 
that infidels have been obliged to resort to the denial of their 
having been delivered before the predicted events came to 
pass. But of this we are sure, that they were perfectly well 
known a very long time before their accomplishment.* 



* " With respect to the particular prophecy (Dan. xi.) relating to the 
kings of Syria and Egypt, which Porphyry affirms was written after 
26* 



806 cTRtrs. 

By the captive nation, the accession of Cyrus must have 
been hailed with dehght. Sadly had they counted the days 
and years of their banishment from their native country. 
The seventy years of their sentence were now numbered, 
and, by a wonderful arrangement of that Providence which 
still regarded them as the adopted children of the promise, 
at the same moment a prince who had been named as their 
liberator above an hundred years before his birth, ascends 
the conquered throne of their oppressors ! His mild and 
lofly character, too, was a happy omen that in Cyrus they 
indeed beheld the " Deliverer." The antitype of that ele« 
gant apostrophe of the prophet : — 

" How beautiful appear on the mountains, 

'' The feet of the joyful messenger ; of him that announc* 
eth peace ! 

" Of the joyful messenger of good tidings ! 

" Of him that announceth salvation f 

" Of him that sayeth unto Zion, Thy God reigneth !"* 

the time of Antiochus Epiphanes, we may remark that the book of 
Daniel was translated into the Greek language one hundred years be^ 
fore he lived ; and that very translation was in the hands of the Egyp. 
tians, who did not cherish any great kindness towards the Jews and 
tJieir religion ; and those prophesies which foretold the successes of 
Alexander, (Dan. viii. 5. xi. 8.) were shown to him by the Jew^s, in 
consequence of which he conferred upon them several privileges." 

Home's Introd, vol. 2. ^.29^9. 

* Lowth's Isaiah. 



( 307 ) 



EZRA. 



^ Mother. Beginning the computation of the seventy 
years' captivity with our most esteemed chronologists, from 
the first taking of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar, it was 
exactly concluded in the first year of the reign of Cyrus ; 
and in strict accordance with the prophecy, in that very 
year, we find the royal rescript for the release of the Jewish 
nation, with authority to rebuild their temple, and a re- 
commendation to his subjects, to promote his beneficent 
intentions by a contribution of whatsoever might be of use 
to the liberated people. 

Fanny. The divine decrees being usually brought about 
by second causes, we may very naturally inquire into the 
motives which induced the king of Persia to re-people a 
city whose rebellious disposition had been so troublesome 
to his predecessors. 

Mother, Whilst the dispersion of the Jews was a chas- 
tisement for their sins, it was happily calculated to dissem- 
inate the knowledge of the true God, in opposition to the 
false deities of their conquerors. Their steady refusal to 
worship idols, and the miraculous preservation of individu- 
als, in the persecution to which that refusal had subjected 
them, had compelled the heathen monarchs to confess that 
the God of Israel " did according to his will, in the army 
of heaven and amongst the inhabitants of the earth. '^ By 
these means the heart of Cyrus might be prepared to lend 
an obedient ear to his prophets. Nor could he read with- 
out emotion, that remarkable prediction, in which he was 
pointed out by name, as " the Shepherd of the Lord, who 
should perform all His pleasure — who should subdue na- 
tions before Him — who should build up His city and let 
go His captives."* That he had seen the prcdiction,^ we 
are told by Josephus, a Jewish historian ; and so it might 
be assumed, because the words of Isaiah are recited in 

* Isaiah, xliv. 28, and xlv. 13. 



308 EMANCIPATION OF THE JEWS. 

the proclamation — and that they were shown to him by 
Daniel, who, as first minister of the empire, would have 
access to the king, and who was intent on the subject, is 
highly probable. 

The order for their emancipation being published, the 
Jews were collected, to the number of nearly fifty thou- 
sand, from all parts of the empire, and set out joyfully for 
Jerusalem, with their camels and other beasts of burden, 
laden with the gifts of their brethren who did not join them 
at this time. (B. C. 536.) But the most precious articles 
which they carried were the gold and silver vessels of the 
temple. Five thousand four hundred of these were brought 
forth from the house of Baal, and delivered to Zerubbabel, 
(or Sheshbazar, as he was called by the Babylonians), a 
grandson of Jehoiachim, and now by Cyrus appointed 
governor of Judea. 

The particular description of persons, which we have 
in the catalogue, (Ezra, chap. 2.,) of those who went up 
to Jerusalent, and their distribution into families and offices 
— as the princes and the elders — the priests and the Le- 
vites — the porters and the singers, attests the sacred care 
that was taken of the national records, amidst all their 
calamities ; and also of the providential design, that the 
tribes should be kept separate until " Shiloh should come." 
Thus the prophecy (Gen. xliv. 10.,) was progressively 
fulfilling; and by these public documents, their officers, 
of every description, could assume their constitutional 
places, and the families which had been torn from their 
country, were enabled to return, each to his patrimonial in- 
heritance. 

After a journey of four months, through a rough and 
sterile country, the exiles arrived safely at Jerusalem, 
their beloved city, in the month Nisam, the first month 
of their ecclesiastical year, — exemplifying, in their whole 
march and its happy termination, the exulting anticipa- 
tion of the prophet, two hundred years anterior to this 
period : — 

" Depart, depart ye ; go ye out from thence, touch no 
polluted thing. 

"Go ye out from the midst of her ; be ye clean, ye that 
bear the vessels of Jehovah ! 



THE CAPTIVES ARRIVE AT JERUSALEM. 309 

" Verily not in haste shall ye go forth ; 

" And not by flight shall ye march along : 

" For Jehovah shall march in your front ; 

" And the God of Israel shall bring up your rear." 

Thus shall the ransomed of Jehovah return and come 
to Sion with loud acclamation. [Lowth''s Isaiah^ c. li. 52.) 

Immediately after their arrival at Jerusalem, the Jews 
rebuilt the altar for burnt-offerings on the spot where it 
had formerly stood in the inner court of the temple, and 
restored the ceremonial rites of their religion : the morn- 
ing and evening sacrifices were offered — and at the ap- 
pointed seasons, the feast of trumpets, and the feast of 
tabernacles were celebrated, and the great day of expia- 
tion was religiously observed. 

Catherine. Did not the Jews, in this return to their 
country, bring with them the superstitions of the heathens, 
as their ancestors had done, when they were delivered 
from Egyptian bondage ? 

Mother, They did not. Nor does it appear that they 
ever apostatized from their faith, during the whole time of 
their banishm.ent ; but rather, that this severe judgment 
was happily the cure of their propensity for idols. In re- 
storing their temple service, they adhered with tenacity to 
the Mosaic law ; permitting no one to approach the altar 
who could not prove his genealogy — or descent from the 
tribe of Levi. Nay, so scrupulous were they now, that 
they refused the assistance of a neighbouring people, who 
desired to unite with them in rebuilding the temple, though 
they professed their devotion to the God of Israel. 

Fanny, Was not that a dereliction of the charity and 
good will which they had been commanded to exercise 
towards strangers or proselytes? 

Mother, In the Jewish commonwealth, privileges were 
conferred upon proselytes in proportion to the degree in 
which they adopted the Mosaic ceremonies and faith. Nor 
are the laws of other nations less rigid in this respect than 
were those of this people. We do not at once admit an 
adopted citizen to all the civil immunities of a native. 
With them, the civil and religious polity was but one and 
the same institution. Jehovah was not less their king 
than their Deity — and the law of his religion was the 



310 REBUILDING OF THE TE3IPLE. 

civil law of his realm. The temple was the inheritance 
of the children of Abraham, and none other had a right 
to the special blessings attached to that holy place. 

In the instance just mentioned, the people who would 
have participated in the re-building of the temple were the 
Samaritans, who had been placed in the cities of Israel, 
when the ten tribes were carried away by the Assyrians. 
No friends to their predecessors in that country — nor sin- 
cere worshippers of the God of Israel, they had merely 
taken Him into communion with their idols. With good 
reason, therefore, their proffered friendship was rejected. 

After having diligently employed the first year of their 
return, in collecting materials for the temple, and arrang- 
ing the priests and Levites in their courses for the super- 
intendence of the work, and the continual service of the 
altar — in the second month of the second year, the founda- 
tion was laid with joyful solemnity; the priests in their 
sacred vestments sounded the trumpet, and the Levites 
sung alternately to the cymbal, the praises of Jehovah for 
his returning mercy to Israel. The younger part of the 
congregation '' shouted aloud for joy," while the ancient 
men who remembered the glory of the former beautiful 
edifice, which their barbarous conquerors had laid in 
ashes, could only answer by their tears ! 

The restoration of the Jewish state, thus auspiciously 
begun, while the people were returning to the peaceable 
cultivation of their lands, and the repairing of their ruin- 
ed habitations, the real temper of the Samaritans was no 
longer dissembled ; disappointed in their insidious attempt 
to procure opportunities of impeding the building, by an 
admission to the confidence of the Jews, they now openly 
misrepresented the character and designs of the latter at 
the court of Cyrus, so that the work was retarded greatly, 
during the whole reign of that prince. 

Charles, Where then was Daniel? Had he not power 
to protect his brethren, in the exercise of the privileges 
which his influence had obtained 1 

Mother, The silence of the Scriptures respecting that 
eminent man, from the date of Cyrus's decree, together 
with the vexations to which his brethren were subsequent- 
ly exposed, seem to warrant the opinion, that he lived lot 



REBUILDING OF THE TEMPLE. 311 

long after that period. Had he yet held the place of first 
counsellor to the king — his sagacity would have discover- 
ed, and his power defeated the machinations of their ene- 
mies. 

Cyrus, the benefactor of the Jews, and the excellent 
prince whose eulogium historians delight to pronounce — 
lived but seven years after his liberation of the Jews. 
Dying then in his seventieth year, the two succeeding 
kings, Cambyses his son, who is called Ahasuerus, in 
Scripture, and Artaxerxes, who was an usurper, were 
easily persuaded to discourage the building. Wearied by 
these vexatious interruptions, the Jews became negligent 
about the temple, whilst they persevered through every 
obstacle in rebuilding their own houses. Darius Hystaspes, 
another king, ascended the throne, yet the Jews did not 
resume the work, although the edicts against them were 
annulled by the death of their authors. The displeasure^ 
of heaven became apparent — the fields were blasted with 
mildew, and with hail — the vine and the fig-tree — the 
olive and the pomegranate withheld their fruits. Nor 
were they left to uncertain conjecture, whether these 
calamities had come to pass in the natural process of 
human affairs, or whether they were to consider them as 
the just reproof of an equal providence ; the prophet 
Haggai was sent to inform them, that the languor and 
indifference which had already taken place of the joyous 
gratitude with which they had laid the foundation of the 
house of God, had spread this melancholy aspect on the 
renovated province. 

Thus awakened to a sense of their guilt, the building 
was resumed, and was going on prosperously, when they 
were again interrupted by their old enemies in the neigh- 
bouring provinces. A decree, however, was in the end 
obtained from Darius, for the prosecution of the holy work 
— accompanied with a command to his governors, to sup- 
ply these vilified Jews with every thing of which they 
had need, from the public treasury, for the building, 
together with cattle for the daily sacrifices to the God of 
heaven — " that they might pray for the life of the king 

* Hag-gai, c. ii. 



312 SECOND TETtrPLE FINISHED. 

and his sons;" and for their further encouragement, the 
prophet Haggai assured them, that " the glory of the lat- 
ter house should be greater than the glory of the former." 

Now, liberally assisted by the bounty of a just and 
clement king, and yet more inspirited by the King of 
Icings, the people prosecuted the work with such diligence, 
that the temple was finished within three years after the 
commission of Darius, being twenty years from its com- 
mencement in the reign of Cyrus. At the pompous dedi- 
cation of this temple (says the learned Prideaux) " the 
cxLvi, cxLvii, and the cxlviii psalms seem to have been 
sung. For in the Septuagint version they -are styled the 
psalms of Haggai and Zachariah, as if they had been 
composed by them for this occasion." 

Fanny, Did the second temple fulfil the promise of 
Haggai, in its superior splendour to the temple of Solo- 
mon 1 

Mother, It certainly did ; but not in the manner, per- 
haps, in which you apprehend that prophecy. The second 
temple was inferior to the first, in the richness and beauty 
of its decorations, and the prodigious quantity of gold ex- 
pended in overlaying many parts of that magnificent 
edifice. The Ark of the Covenant — the Divine Presence 
which was manifested by a bright cloud over the mercy- 
seat — the sacred fire which descended upon the sacrifice 
at the dedication of Solomon's temple — the Urim and 
Thummim, or breast-plate of Aaron, by which divine 
counsel was obtained — the sacred oil with which the priests 
and utensils for divine service, were consecrated — all gave 
an ineffable sanctity to the first temple which was not com- 
municated to the second ; but all these wants and defects 
were more than compensated, when the desire of all 
nations, the Lord, whom they sought, came to this his 
temple, and Christ our Saviour, who was the truest 
Schekinah of the Divine Majesty, honoured it with his 
presence and thus accomplished the promise. (Prideaux, 
vol. 1. p. 127.) 

Whilst their affairs at Jerusalem were thus prosperously 
going on, the captives v/ho remained in Babylon, sent a; 
deputation to the elders, to inquire whether it were yet in-- 
cumbent on them to observe the annual fasts which had 



COMMISSION TO EZRA. 3i3 

been instituted on several occasions of great calamity to 
their nation — such as the destruction of the temple — the 
murder of Gedahah, their upright governor, whom Nebu- 
chadnezzar had set over them, and others — all which they 
had kept during the whole seventy years of their banish- 
ment. — The answer to their inquiry, which is contained 
in the seventh chapter of Zachariah's prophecy, is a lesson 
not less instructive to us than it was to the formalists of 
those days : That they had pleased themselves by a show 
of humiliation, whilst they had neglected the only homage 
that could be acceptable to the Omniscient Searcher of the 
heart. '' Execute true judgment," said the prophet, " and 
show mercy and compassion every man to his brother. 
And oppress not the widow or the fatherless, the stranger 
nor the poor, and let none of you imagine evil against his 
brother in your heart." 

But although the temple was rebuilt, Judah continued in 
a languishing state until the reign of Artaxerxes. This 
prince, resuming the kindness which had been shown to the 
Jews by several of his predecessors, gave a new commis- 
sion in their favour. He to v/hom this was directed was 
JEzra, ^vhose book we have before us, and from whose pen 
we have the account of these transactions. Ezra was a 
priest, of great sanctity of life and profoundly skilled in the 
Mosaic law. The former decrees had enabled the Jews to 
restore their house of worship ; but this empov/ered Ezra 
to appoint magistrates and judges — to enforce " the law of 
God and the king" — and inflict the severest punishments 
on the disobedient. The sacred vessels of the temple which 
yet remained at Babylon, were delivered up to Ezra, be- 
sides a very large sum in gold and silver, to furnish him, 
and all who might desire to go with him to Jerusalem, with 
all manner of provision for their journey, and offerings for 
" the king and his counsellors." This commission, too, 
commanded the king's treasurers of the provinces to give 
mto Ezra's hands whatsoever was commanded by the God 
of Heaven for " his house, that his wrath might be averted 
from the king and his sons," and exonerated the priests, 
with all the inferior ministers of the temple, from the pay- 
ment of any tribute whatsoever. 
27 



314 EZRA ARRIVES AT JERUSALEM. 

Fanny. The Persians, then, it may be presumed, were 
not idolaters ? 

Mother, They were yet idolaters, but not of the baser 
sort. Their adoration was offered to fire ; but chiefly to the 
sun, as the most pure and perfect emblem of the Deity. 
He, however, v/as the object of their worship, as you may 
discover in their desire to conciliate His favour by liberal- 
ity to His people, and by commanding sacrifices to be 
offered at Jerusalem in behalf of the royal family. 

This commission to Ezra being so much more full and 
comprehensive than those which had gone before, our best 
commentators begin here to compute the seventy weeks of 
Daniel, at the conclusion of which the Messiah should 
come. (B. C. 457.) 

In consequence of this great indulgence to their nation, 
seventeen hundred and fifty-four Jews repaired to Ezra at 
Shushan, now the seat of the Persian government, and de- 
parted for Jerusalem on the ninth day of the first month. 
Having before them a long and toilsome journey, and car- 
rying a vast quantity of valuable goods, they encamped at 
the river Ahava, not far from the city, to implore the pro- 
tection of heaven from the various accidents to which they 
might be exposed — particularly the depredations of wan- 
dering Arabs, and other hostile tribes. They might indeed 
have obtained from their munificent king a guard of sol- 
diers, but they had professed to him their confidence in the 
blessing of God on their undertaking ; and therefore they 
chose rather to attest their sincerity, by committing them- 
selves wholly to his protection. After three days of prayer 
and fasting, they left the river, and arrived safely at Jeru- 
salem, in the beginning of the fifth month. 

The king's letters to his lieutenants being delivered, the 
gold and silver deposited in the treasury, and sacrifices 
offered by the returning exiles, Ezra applied himself to the 
principal object of his journey. 

Inquiring into the state of the colony, he learned, to his 
great grief, that they had already transgressed their law, 
by intermarriages with the heathens around them, to an 
enormous extent, and even that the priests were among the 
offenders ! 



CORRECTS IRREGULARITIES. 315 

Catherine. The very sin that had so largely contributed 
to the calamities from which they had but just escaped ! 

Mother. No wonder, then, that the pious priest was 
overwhelmed with astonishment and sorrow, when he heard 
of their ingratitude to their Supreme Deliverer, and that 
their reformation, in this alarming particular, should be 
his first care. Assembled at the evening sacrifice, his 
earnest prayers in their behalf, and his solemn deprecation 
of the wrath they had incurred, so deeply affected the whole 
congregation, that all present who had violated the law, 
came voluntarily to Ezra, and declared their readiness to 
put away the strange wives they had taken, and the chil- 
dren who were born of them. Taking them instantly at 
their word, he exacted an oath that they would abide by 
their own decision. Judges were then appointed to inquire 
into the matter, and a proclamation issued, requiring every 
individual who was implicated to appear at Jerusalem, on 
pain of confiscation of his property and excommunication 
from the church of Israel ; and after a careful examination, 
which consumed above two months of time, all the aliens 
were separated from the congregation. 

Fanny. The people of whom you are speaking, being 
not the individuals who had been carried into captivity, but 
their descendants, may we not charitably suppose them to 
have erred through ignorance of the Jewish law ? 

Mother. We can scarcely suppose them ignorant on 
this prominent article of their religion, although they may 
not have been informed on many others. Ignorance, how- 
ever, would not excuse, but aggravate their guilt, for they 
were not destitute of the means of instruction. Copies of 
the Law were carried with them to Babylon, and there, 
indeed, they were preserved; otherwise, we might have 
been at this day without a genuine Bible! But, circum- 
stanced as they were, in a heathen land, and far distant 
from Jerusalem, had the fathers of the church been careful 
to distribute the sacred books, the people would have known 
the Law, and would not have corrupted it with traditions, 
as they did in the captivity. Yet let us not judge them too 
harshly ; we might ourselves, and most probably would, 
become indifferent, were we, like these poor captives, re- 
moved from the possibility of performing the most precious 



316 EZRA COLLECTS THE SACRED BOOKS. 

ordinances of our religion. When we recollect, too, that 
writings could not be multiplied by them as they can with 
us, at a very small expense, but only by the labour of 
copying with the pen, we ought to pity, if we cannot jus- 
tify, their neglect. 

To restore the Mosaic system to its purity, and to teach 
those who knew it not, Ezra performed a work which at 
this day demands our thankful recollection. He collected 
all the manuscript copies of the sacred books within his 
reach, corrected the errors of transcribers, and settled what 
we now call " the canon of Scripture," so far as it had been 
given in his time — that is, the words and the books'^ which 
were the dictates of the Holy Spirit, and rejected such as 
were spurious. Having done this, he copied them out 
from the Hebrew, the original language of the Israelites, 
into the Chaldean, which, since their residence in Babylon, 
had become the vernacular tongue of the Jews. 

We have not the express authority of holy writ for as- 
cribing this great work to Ezra. It is the account of re- 
spectable Jewish writers, and has been always received by 
the church, both Jewish and Christian. 

Let us now leave the pious priest in the prosecution of 
his important labours, and return awhile to the court of 
Persia, where we shall find such events occurring, about 
this time, as contributed to the singular preservation of the 
house of Israel. 



* The subdivision into chapters and verses, an invention for the 
more convenient reading of the Scriptures, is of modern date. 

Prideaux. 



( 317 ) 



ESTHER. 



Mother. We have seen, in the preceding history, several 
remarkable interpositions of Providence, in favour of the 
banished house of David, which tended not only to the 
amelioration of their condition, but to their conservation 
as a nation. The beautiful story of Esther^ interesting in 
itself, and instructive as a lesson to the ambitious, is an- 
other instance of that special care which has enabled us 
at this day to produce the Israelites as an incontestable 
argument for the truth of Revelation. 

Somewhere about this period of the Persian history, 
Artaxerxes made a great entertainment to celebrate his 
victories. Not less proud of the uncommon beauty of his 
queen, than of his success in the wars, Artaxerxes com- 
manded her to appear in his apartments, on this occasion, 
to indulge his vanity, in the admiration of all the princes 
and nobles of his realm. But Yashti refused to make 
such a public exhibition of her person, and her disobe- 
dience incurred the instant sentence of deposition. 

Neither the plea of female delicacy, nor the adverse 
customs of the Persian ladies, nor yet the high dignity of 
her station, extenuated the crime of the unfortunate Vashti : 
the decree unalterable of the Medes and Persians, was 
registered against her, and a proclamation immediately 
went forth to collect the fairest maidens of the realm, that 
another queen might be selected. 

In a kingdom comprising a hundred and twenty-seven 
provinces, and with a prize so resplendent at issue, the 
court of Ahasuerus would soon exhibit a great assemblage 
of female charms. Superior in mind, as in person, a 
young Jewess named Hadassah, had the good fortune to 
captivate the monarch : the royal crown was placed on 
her head, and amidst rejoicings and feasting, and gifts to 
his servants, and the release of tribute to the provinces, 
she was declared queen instead of Vashti. 

Hadassah v/as the orphan niece of Mordecai, a Benja- 
27* 



318 STORY OF ESTHER. 

mite, who had adopted, and brought her up. He seems to 
have held some office about the court, for he is said to sit 
daily '' in the king's gate," whilst he waited with anxiety 
to know the fate of his fair daughter. 

Charles, Was Ahasuerus ignorant of the country of 
Hadassah, that he took a wife from a conquered people ? 

Mother* Princes were not so nice in those days as to 
require a descent from a long line of kings. Personal 
charms in a consort was very often the single object of 
their choice ; yet Mordecai had charged his niece " not to 
show her kindred," and perhaps for this reason she was 
now called Esther^ a Persian word, which signifies " secret 
or hidden." 

Not long after the advancement of Esther, Mordecai 
had an opportunity of rendering an important service to 
the king — no less than the preservation of his life. As- 
sociating daily with the officers about the court, he became 
acquainted with a conspiracy to assassinate the monarch, 
of which he immediately apprised him through the queen ; 
the conspirators were crucified, and all the circumstances 
were recorded in the chronicles, or public register of 
Persia ; but Mordecai sat unrewarded at the king's gate ! 
Sooner or later, however, the virtuous deeds of men will 
find their due reward; already was one prepared in the 
mysterious counsels of Providence for this faithful servant, 
by the hand of a man not only his personal foe, but the 
enemy of his nation. 

At this time the royal favour was lavished with un- 
bounded profusion, on Haman, an Amalekite. Elevated 
above all the nobles of Persia, he received the willing 
homage of the crowd ; for the friendship of princes is the 
sure path to the obsequiousness of the populace. All 
bowed to Haman, except Mordecai, whose steady virtue 
would yield no mark of respect to a base and imperious 
man, especially to an Amalekite, though the favourite of 
a powerful king. Enjoying all the honours of a luxurious 
palace, Haman might well have spared the passing reve- 
rence of Mordecai, but his heart swelled with indignation 
and he determined on revenge. The ruin of an obscure 
individual, however, was a satisfaction too mean for his 
lofty pride ; it was therefore settled in a consultation with 



STORY OF ESTHER. 319 

his friends that the whole nation of the offender should 
perish together with himself! The daring scheme was 
not to be undertaken even by this council of demons with- 
out due caution ; lots were therefore cast for the selection 
of a day whose auspicious aspect might ensure their suc- 
cess, and the choice fell on the thirteenth day of the month 
Adar, the twelfth month of the Jewish calendar. This 
point being settled, Haman proceeded boldly to his royal 
patron, and with an affected anxiety for the prosperity of 
his kingdom, represented the unoffending Jews as a dan- 
gerous class of subjects who ought to be wholly and at 
once exterminated — and that he might seem the more dis- 
interested, he offered at the same time to pay from his 
own purse above two millions of pounds in silver, that the 
king's treasury might not suffer by a sudden excision of 
the taxes which were paid by the obnoxious people. 

Charles. Two millions of silver ! — a princely gift in- 
deed for a subject to present ! 

Mother. Incredible indeed, with us — but gold and sil- 
ver in those days were amassed with comparative facility : 
the monarch however, equally generous, and setting no 
bounds to his indulgence, at once declined the offer, and 
delivered up the poor Jews, to be dealt with according to 
the good pleasure of the petitioner ; and in token of his 
acquiescence, equally barbarous and weak, the royal ring 
was put on the hand of the vile Amalekite. 

Exulting now in the success of his horrible artifice, 
Haman speedily despatched letters to the officers of every 
province in the empire, commanding them " to destroy all 
Jews, both young and old, little children and women in 
one day, even upon the thirteenth day of the twelfth 
month, and to take the spoil for a prey." 

Comparatively but few of the Jews had availed them- 
selves of their liberty to return to Jerusalem. A vast 
number were yet scattered throughout Asia. It would be 
superfluous to describe the sensation produced by the 
king's letters. The words of the sanguinary edict are a 
sufficient exposition of the deplorable case. In Shushan 
and its vicinity where the greater number, perhaps, were 
to be found, the mournful wailing of the wretched sufferers, 
and the deep sympathy of the inhabitants spread a uni- 



320 STORY OF ESTHER. 

versal gloom ! Mordecai himself put on sackcloth, and 
with ashes on his head, presented himself before the 
palace ; for in this mourning habit he might not take his 
accustomed place within the royal gate. All this while 
the fair Esther shut up in her apartments knew nothing of 
the perilous condition of her kindred ; but the appearance 
of Mordecai, and the consternation of the city, at length 
reaching her, she sent out to inquire from her venerable 
uncle himself. 

This was the opportunity he had ardently sought, and 
now the whole story was laid before her, with a copy of 
the decree, and the name of its vile projector ; accompani- 
ed by a solemn injunction from Mordecai, to go in to the 
king and make supplication for her people. But what 
could poor Esther do 1 — By a law of the realm it was 
death to approach the prince v/ithout a special summons, 
nor could she, more than others, presume on his clemency 
at this awful moment, inasmuch as she had not been call- 
ed into his presence for the last thirty days ! With this 
perplexing intimation she sent back her chamberlain to 
Mordecai : but he bade him return and tell the queen 
plainly, that " even her exalted station would not protect 
her from the determined malice of their enemy, that she 
too was doomed to fall with her father's house ; but that 
God would in some manner deliver his people ; and for 
aught she knew, his providence had put the means into her 
hand." This appeal to the piety of the queen was con- 
clusive : " go and tell Mordecai," she replied, " to gather 
all the Jew^ that are in Shushan, and fast ye for me, and 
neither eat nor drink three days — night or day : I also 
and my maidens w^ill fast likewise ; and so will I go in 
unto the king, which is not according to law ; and if I 
perish, I perish !" 

The command of Esther was obeyed ; and on the third 
day she herself prepared to execute her heroic resolution. 
Dressed in her royal robes, she ventured, yet trembling, 
into the inner court, and stood opposite to the throne, on 
which Ahasuerus sat, with the golden sceptre in his hand. 
No fatherly yearning had touched his heart, when his 
profligate minister had asked the destruction of a nation — 
but love was stronger than compassion, the beauty of 



STORY OF ESTHER. 321 

Esther was irresistible — the extended sceptre pronounced 
her pardon, and the encouraging voice of the monarch 
anticipating a request, assured her of its success — even to 
the half of his kingdom ! Strengthening her interest per- 
haps by exciting his curiosity, she merely intreated that 
the king would come with his favourite Haman, on the 
following day, to a banquet which she had prepared. The 
banquet was accordingly attended ; no business was men- 
tioned by the queen, but the invitation was repeated for 
another day, when she added, she would present her pe- 
tition. 

Fanny. Was Haman yet ignorant of Esther's near re- 
lationship to Mordecai ? 

Mother, He was happily quite ignorant of that circum- 
stance. Retiring from the queen's apartments, he passed 
the humble Mordecai as usual, without receiving that rev- 
erence to which he was accustomed from the populace. 
Contempt, so often repeated, could no longer be endured. 
The scorn of one obscure captive hung heavy on his proud 
heart, and embittered all his enjoyments. Transported 
with the desire of immediate revenge, he determined not to 
wait the arrival of the month Adar, which would involve 
Mordecai in the common destruction of all his people — but 
instantly sent for his friends, to devise some means to re- 
move at once this corroding thorn in his side. He recounted 
to them all his riches and his honours, the many favours 
bestowed upon him by his sovereign, who had advanced 
him above all his princes and servants, and then told them 
of the distinction that had marked that very day, when " no 
man but himself had been admitted with the king to the 
queen's banquet," and that the invitation was repeated for 
the next day. After this prelude, he came to the business 
of the meeting, with the humbling confession, " Yet all this 
availeth me nothing, so long as I see Mordecai the Jew 
sitting at the king's gate !" 

Zeresh, his wife, elated by the fine account of her hus- 
band's high standing at court, to which she had been list- 
ening, and supposing that the trifling boon of poor Mordecai's 
life could not be refused, advised him to go immediately and 
erect a gallows, and betimes in the morning obtain the 
king's warrant to remove his enemy from his sight — then 



322 STORY OF ESTHER. 

could he " go in merrily to the queen's banquet." Equally 
sanguine with his inhuman wife, Haman delayed not to 
execute her scheme, and anticipated a complete triumph in 
the morning. 

On that memorable night, a superintending Providence — 
which is always taking better care of us than we can take 
of ourselves — disturbed the rest of Ahasuerus : he could 
not sleep. Wearied at length by the vain effort, he com- 
manded his attendants to amuse him by reading to him the 
chronicle of his reign. Passing unnoticed the events as 
they occurred, until the reader came to the detection of the 
conspiracy by Mordecai, his attention was at once arrested. 
What honours, he inquired, had Mordecai received for this 
instance of his loyalty 1 and the answer, " there is nothing 
done for him," filled his mind with regret and shame. Im- 
patient, then, to expiate his inexcusable neglect, he inquired 
who waited in the outer court, that orders might be given 
on the instant. At this critical moment, was Haman found 
waiting for admission, that he might obtain the royal war- 
rant for the immediate execution of the hated Mordecai ! 
Without hearing what had brought the prime minister thus 
early to the palace, the king hastily demanded, " what 
ought to be done to the man whom the king delighted to 
honour ?" " To whom would the kins; delicrht to do honour 
more than to myself?" thought the vain Haman — " I, who 
alone am invited to the banquet of my royal mistress !" 
An opportunity, he now thought, was offered to display his 
dignities before the multitude, to receive their adulation, and 
to add to the envy of Mordecai ; and certainly no distinc- 
tion whatever was beyond his desert. Very cheerily, 
therefore, he replied, — " Let the royal apparel be brought 
which the king useth to wear, and the horse that the king 
rideth upon, and the crown royal which is set upon his 
head ; and let this apparel and horse be delivered to the 
hand of one of the king's most noble princes, that they may 
array the man withal, whom the king delighteth to honour, 
and bring him on horseback through the street of the city, 
and proclaim before him, " Thus shall it be done to the 
man whom the king delighteth to honour !" But how were 
his proud anticipations reversed, when he was commanded 



STORY OF ESTHER. 



323 



to go himself, and array Mordecai the Jew— to make haste, 
and let nothing fail of all that he had advised ! 

From the performance of this command, whilst the hum- 
ble Mordecai returned to his daily resort before the palace 
gate, Haman went home, convulsed by mortification and 
hatred, and related to his wife and friends all the circum- 
stances of his bitter disappointment; nor was it at all miti- 
gated by their apprehensive suggestion, that this might be 
but the prelude to his fall before the rising fortunes of the 
despised Jew. Still the unalterable decree, which would 
afford ample revenge, was before him, and the immediate 
honour of the queen's second banquet was at hand ; and 
whilst they yet talked over this unexpected turn in their 
affairs, the king's chamberlain arrived to attend the most 
noble Haman to her majesty's apartments. Here, whilst 
they yet sat at table, the king inquired into the object of 
this formal preparation, and encouraged Esther to speak 
freely her petition, for it should be granted even to the hall 
of his kingdom.—" Her own life," at last she declared, 
" and the hfe of her people, was her request! For we are 
sold," continued she, no longer apprehending his displea- 
sure, " I and my people are to be destroyed— to be slain. 
But, if we had been sold for bondmen and bondwomen, I 
had' held my tongue, although the enemy could not coun- 
tervail the kind's damage." The life of Esther— one of 
the most beloved of his wives ! " Who is he, and where 
is he," cried the king, in a voice which struck terror to 
the conscious soul of Haman, "that durst presume in his 
heart to do so ?" " The adversary and enemy is this wicked 
Haman ;"— was enough for Ahasuerus : but when he whom 
prosperity has made insolent begins to fall, there is no want 
of accusers. Harbonah, a chamberlain m waiting, now 
told of the gallows which Haman had already prepared for 
the queen's uncle, " who had spoken good for the king; 
and the decisive sentence, " hang him thereon, followed 

instantly. ^ „ . -, m - i 

Thus fell the insolent Haman, in the full tide of his glory, 
meditatino- the sacrifice of thousands to his merciless re- 
sentment! while the sackcloth of the devoted Mordecai 
was exchanged for princely robes of purple, and his head 
was crowned with a tiara of gold ! 



324 



STORY OF ESTHER. 



Fanny. But how fared the poor Jews, condemned by 
the king's edict, which might not be repealed ? 

Mother. Neither the tears of Esther, nor the influence 
of Mordecai, although his relationship to the queen was 
now disclosed to the king, could violate a law of the realm 
of Persia; but they were permitted to send expresses 
throughout the provinces from Ethiopia to India, with let- 
ters under the king's seal, empowering their proscribed 
brethren to take up arms in their own defence, and to slay 
all who assaulted them on the thirteenth day of the month 
Adar, and to possess themselves of their effects. Accord- 
ingly, on that fatal day, the condition of the Jews through- 
out Asia was completely reversed ; seventy-five thousand 
of their enemies were slain, " but they laid not their hands 
on the spoil ;" and in Shushan, five hundred more were put 
to death. Mordecai was advanced to the first place amongst 
the nobles, and all Shushan rejoiced in the elevation of an 
upright man. 

The fourteenth and the fifteenth days of the month 
Adar were appointed to continue throughout their genera- 
tions as a festival* of joy and thanksgiving, for their won- 
derful preservation, and the Jews now attained so high a 
standing in Persia that many of the natives became prose- 
lytes to their holy religion. 

* This festival is called the feast of Purim, and is kei)t to this day. 



( 325 ) 



NEHEMIAH. 



Mother » Conformably with the reputation which the 
Jews had obtained in the court of Persia, in consequence 
of the high character of some individuals of that nation, 
and of Esther's advancement to the throne — we find Nehe- 
miah, (one of the captives,) in the honourable place of 
cup-bearer to the king. 

Without any preparatory circumstance of his life, Nehe- 
miah presents himself, in the commencement of his book, 
as waiting in his office, on a certain day, with a counte- 
nance so dejected, that his royal patron inquired the cause. 

Encouraged by this condescension^ and by the presence 
of the queen, he acknowledged that his sadness was occa- 
sioned by his having learned from one of his brethren, 
who had lately returned from Jerusalem, that the province 
was in great affliction, contending with many difficulties 
amongst themselves, and exposed to incursions from their 
enemies, the walls of the city yet lying in ruins* Nehe- 
miah had never himself beheld the celebrated city of 
David— but it was tl;e country of his ancestors, the con- 
secrated seat of his religion, the object of his solicitude 
and prayers— and now that a proper opportunity seemed 
to offer, he ventured to make a request,— respectfully pre- 
facing it with the usual invocation, " let the king live for- 
ever," and mentally prayiiig that the heart of the king 
might be inclined in his favour, he intreated that he " might 
be sent to the city of Iiis fathers' sepulchres, to rebuild 
the walls, and contribute his mite to the welfare of his 

people." 1 J /• 

Catherine, Then I presume Ezra had not yet had sul* 
ficient time to rebuild the wall, for, provided as he was 
with facilities, and surrounded by those who were known 
to be unfriendly to him, he would not have neglected that 
necessary measure of defence ? 

Mother. This was now the twentieth year of Arta* 
xerxes ; the commission to Ezra had been given in the 
28 



826 NEHEMIAH ^E^f TO JERXJSALE.H. 

seventh, consequently, he had been there about thirteen 
years ; but he had no authority to build the wall. Per- 
haps the prince in that early part of his reign might have 
questioned the policy of allowing a people who had been 
represented as seditious, thus to fortify their capital ; and 
the liberty was withheld, until experience might sanction 
it. Besides, the duties committed to Ezra were abundant- 
ly sufficient to employ his whole time and attention, espe- 
cially his great work of collecting the sacred books ; and 
the offerings and the contributions which the royal trea- 
surers were commanded to furnish, were chiefly to be ap- 
plied to the completion of the temple, the maintenance of 
the priests, and the daily sacrifice. 

The request of Nehemiah, however, was readily grant- 
ed, but the condition was annexed, that he must return to 
Shushan, at a time agreed upon between himself and the 
king. He appears to have been a favourite at court, for 
not only was his return required, but measures were taken 
to prevent any insult or detention on the way. A troop 
of horse was ordered to escort him, and letters under the 
royal seal, were sent by him, to the chiefs whose pro- 
vinces he must pass through, commanding them to convey 
him in safety. He was furnished likewise, with an order 
to the keeper of the king's forests, to provide as much 
timber as Nehemiah might require for the building of the 
walls of Jerusalem, and the erection of a house for him- 
self. 

Thus respectfully attended, the new governor was re- 
ceived with great cordiality at Jerusalem. Having suffer- 
ed so much from their troublesome neighbours, all classes 
of people, both the rich and the poor— the husbandman 
and the artist, were ready to put themselves under his 
direction, and unite heart and hand to streno-then the state 
by erecting the walls of their capital. An immense multi- 
tude being gathered, they were divided into companies, 
officers appointed to overlook each division, and Nehemiah 
himself superintending with great diligence, the barriers 
soon began to rise from their ruins. A work, however 
so ungrateful to their ancient enemies, did not go on with-' 
out interruption. The Moabites, the Ammonites, and the 
bamaritans, who could not endure the prosperity of Judah 



WALL OF JERUSALEM REBUILT. 327 

threw every possible obstruction in their way : insolent 
messages were unnoticed — and menaces of violence en- 
sued :^but undaunted by these, the work was not retarded. 
Nehemiah provided the labourers with arms, and watch- 
men, with trumpets to sound an alarm in case of an attack, 
were placed at convenient distances ; and inspirited, be- 
sides, by the exhortations of their governor, they sur- 
mounted every obstacle, and the walls were completed, 
even to the hanging of the gates, in iwo-and-fifly days ! 

But notwithstanding the unanimity and spirit with which 
they triumphed over all opposition from their enemies, dis- 
satisfaction existed among themselves. The poor com- 
plained, that a scarcity and consequent high price of pro- 
visions, compelled them to borrow money of the rich, on 
which such exorbitant interest had been exacted, that 
their lands had been mortgaged, and finally their children 
were made slaves ! The taking of usurious interest from 
their brethren was forbidden by the Mosaic law, as tend- 
ing to destroy that equality which ought in some measure 
to°subsist amongst the members of one family. As soon, 
therefore, as their complaints reached the ear of Nehe- 
miah, he reproved the oppressors, and obliged them to re- 
store their unjust gains. Indeed, they were ashamed to 
refuse, with the example of his disinterested liberality be- 
fore them— an hundred and fifty persons, besides many 
strangers who visited Jerusalem, being entertained every 
day at his table, himself and his household devoted to the 
public works, yet refusing to accept of the presents that 
had been commonly paid to the governors : nor did he 
during the twelve years of his presidency receive a salary 
from the king. 

Charles, How then did he support such an enormous 

expense ? 

Mother. He was a man of great wealth, and very 
cheerfully employed it in the service of his people. Be- 
sides the hospitality of his house, he gave from his own 
purse a thousand drachms of gold, and many other things, 
to the work in which he was engaged. Others among the 
principal men following his example contributed large 
sums of gold and silver. But their governor, above all, 
was indefatigable in his exertions for the common good. 



328 SCRIPTURES PUBLISHED BY EZRA. 

The sufferers who had lost their houses or their vineyards, 
being reinstated, and other abuses rectified, the inhabitants, 
once more in harmony, prepared for a solemn dedication 
of the new wall. The princes, the Levites, the musicians, 
and the singers, were all summoned from every part of 
the country, and, after undergoing the legal purifications, 
without which they could engage in no religious service, 
they were distributed in order around the walls, and whilst 
the priests offered sacrifices, the praises of Jehovah once 
more ascended from the lofty tov/ers of Jerusalem ! 

By this time Ezra had finished his edition of the Scrip- 
tures,* and when the people assembled at the feast of 
Trumpets, or the New-year festival, on the first day of 
the seventh month of the ecclesiastical year, and the first 
of the civic year, " the Book of the Law" was read to 
them by the compiler himself, assisted by thirteen of the 
principal elders; Ezra reading in the original Hebrew, 
and the elders repeating, period by period, from the Chal- 
dee, into which he had rendered the whole. Here they 
found that the fifteenth day of the same month was the 
time for the feast of Tabernacles. This festival, though 
of all others the most joyous and social, had been wholly 
neglected from the days of Joshua ; but now that a com- 
plete reformation was in progress, by the joint labours of 
Neheniiah and Ezra, the people came willingly from all 
parts of Judea to Jerusalem, and celebrated this also. 

* In this laborious and important work, we are told upon competent 
authorities, Ezra was assisted by a body of learned men, called the 
Great Synagogue, which consisted of one hundred and twenty elders. 
*' The truth of this (says Prideaux) seemeth most likely to have been, 
that these one hundred and twenty men were such principal elders as 
lived in a continued succession from the first return of the Jews from 
Babylon, to the death of Simon the Just, and laboured, in their several 
times, some after others, in the carrying on of the two great works 
above mentioned," (i. e. restoring the correct usages of the Jews, and 
editing the sacred books,) *' till both were fully completed, in the time 
of Simon the Just, (who was made high priest of the Jews in the 
twenty -fifth year after the death of Alexander the Great) and Ezra 
had the assistance of such of them as lived in his time. But the 
whole conduct of the work, and the glory of accomplishing it, is by 
the Jews chiefly attributed to him, under whose presidency (they tell 
us) it was done : and, therefore, they look upon him as another 
Moses." Prideaux^ vol i, p, 254. 



TEMPLE BUILT AT SA3IARIA. 329 

Durino- the whole seven days of the feast, the Book of the 
Law was read to them day by day until the whole was 
cone through. In this review of their law they saw much 
of which they had been ignorant, and much more that 
they had neglected ; and, with one accord, they professed 
their determination to adopt another course of conduct. 
Ezra and Nehemiah, therefore, to improve and confirm 
them in a temper so desirable, appointed a day of fasting, 
confession, and prayer, after which a formal adoption of 
the whole Mosaic law took place, and the covenant was 
solemnly signed and sealed by the princes, the Levites, 
and the priests, for the whole congregation. 

Nehemiah's leave of absence having now expired, he 
gave Jerusalem in charge to Hanani and Hananiah, two 
men of distinguished character, and returned to the palace 
with an account of his mission. After some years, perhaps 
five or six, he again obtained leave to go and inquire into 
the affairs of Judea. These particulars are but hinted in 
his history ; but it is highly probable that the king of Per- 
sia was not insensible to the benefits which must accrue to 
his empire, from the skilful efforts of such an upright man 
as Nehemiah, in promoting order and morality in his dis- 
tant provinces, and therefore authorized this second visit. 
It is also probable that the time of his stay at Shushan was 
considerable, for he found much to correct on his return 
to Jerusalem. Some had again transgressed the law, by 
forming connexions with the heathens. The most noted 
amongst these was Manasseh, a priest, who had married 
the daughter of Sanballet, the governor of Samaria. He 
was immediately driven from the sacred order. Leaving 
Jerusalem, he was received by Sanballat, who obtained a 
license to erect a temple in Samaria, resembling that in 
Zion, and Manasseh was constituted the high priest. Sa- 
maria then became the resort of apostates ; and the mongrel 
religion which had been adopted by the colonists, afi;er the 
deportation of the Israelites, in the reign of Shalmaneser, 
was the religion of Manasseh's temple. 

In process of time, however, it was purified from its 
dross ; the statutes of^ Moses alone were acknowledged ; 
yet the hatred of the Jews to the Samaritans, as we find 
by the New Testament, still continued. 
28* 



330 



REFORMATION BY NEHEMIAH. 



Another grievous vexation to Nehemiah, was the profa* 
nation of the Sabbath, which, in his absence, had gone to 
a shocking length. Jerusalem again rising into opulence, 
her commerce with the neighbouring states was revived ; 
the Tyrians, especially, who, in all periods of their history, 
were celebrated for their extensive trade, again brought in 
their merchandise. Ability to purchase brings with it a 
taste for foreign luxuries ; the Tyrians could well minister 
to this, and the Jews were not only tempted to defraud the 
Levites of their tithes, that themselves might indulge in the 
rich manufactures of Tyre, but they admitted the sellers to 
expose their wares on the Sabbath, and even laboured in 
their own vineyards on that sacred day. To put a stop to 
such outrages, Nehemiah ordered the gates of the city to 
be shut and strictly guarded on the Sabbath ; the traders 
then erected their stalls under the walls of Jerusalem on 
the outside, but this, too, was forbidden ; and menaces of 
seizure and punishment at length obliged them to desist. 

Ignorance of the law still prevailed amongst the people ; 
and to this fruitful source of all evil, their transgressions 
might be generally referred. To disseminate knowledge 
is the best means to promote virtue, and to this great end 
Nehemiah next directed his care. 

Fanny. How could the people possibly be ignorant 
with the book of the law in their hands? 

Mother. That it was not generally in their hands, was 
their misfortune. Books of all kinds, in every age and 
nation, must have been but scarce whilst they could be 
multiplied only by the pen. It is to the inestimable art of 
printing that we are indebted for the blessed light of litera- 
ture : by means of that, the Bible now traverses the globe 
and illuminates the palace and the cottage. But few of ws 
can extenuate our sins by the plea of ignorance ; for, be- 
sides the sacred Scriptures we have a thousand helps in 
our way, the very first of which is, public instruction on 
the Sabbath. 

Catherine. Can you tell us how and when that great 
benefit originated ? 

Mother. That is the point to which my remarks were 
intended to lead you — to the origin of Christian churches, 
in the synagogues of the Jews, which, about this period of 



SYNAGOGUES INSTITUTED. 331 

their history, were instituted as a means of popular instruc- 
tion. That the churches of the first Christians were but 
a continuance of the synagogue, where they had been ac- 
customed, before their conversion, to worship, was never 
questioned, but the precise time of their institution is not 
so exactly ascertained: to this period of Jewish history they 
are assigned by the best authorities. They are not men- 
tioned in Scripture until after the captivity, wherefore it is 
argued that they did not exist. Whether those two en-* 
lightened reformers — Ezra and Nehemiah — lived long 
enough to lend their personal services in the erection of 
synagogues, we cannot tell ; but the conclusion is just, that 
the pains which they took to bring the common people ac- 
quainted v/ith the Scriptures, and the good effects which 
were seen immediately to flow from the hearing them read 
and expounded, first suggested this most excellent mode of 
instruction. 

The temple service, although wrapt in obscurity, was 
calculated to teach them that they were sinners, and stood 
in need of continual intercession : but those who lived at a 
distance from Jerusalem would receive but little advantage 
from attending there but three times in the year; and even 
at these solemn convocations, the males alone were com- 
manded to appear. To these, then, and to the women and 
children, the synagogue was invaluable ; for, placed in all 
their cities and villages, wheresoever a very small con- 
gregation might be collected, they were opened every Sab- 
bath, and frequently throughout the week, and there the 
sacred books were read and explained, and the assembly 
united in prayer. 

Fanny, Did singing in our manner make a part of the 
synagogue form of worship ? 

Mother, Music, both vocal and instrumental, made a 
part of the temple service, which was altogether imposing 
and magnificent, and it was used on other religious occa- 
sions, and at the celebration of a great national event; but 
it has never been, so far as I know, introduced into the 
synagogue. 

The great change in the circumstances of the Israelites, 
on their re-establishment in their own land, is a good rea- 
son for referring the institution of some new mode of en- 



832 THE LAW PRESCEIBED FOR THE JEWS. 

lightening their minds to this era of their history. From 
the calling of their father Abraham, to this moment, they 
had been guided and governed in an extraordinary manner. 
The Divine Oracle had given them counsel from between 
the Cherubim — fire from Heaven had testified the accept- 
ance of their oblations — their prophets had been instructed 
by visions and by dreams — and lastly, they had invariably 
prospered " in their basket and their store," when they 
obeyed the Divine commands, and were as constantly af- 
flicted when they transgressed. All these marks of a direct 
superintendence were now to be withdrawn, and they were 
to participate with other nations in that common provi- 
dence which " sends his rain on the just, and on the un- 
just." The Book of the Law was now to be their monitor 
and their guide ; and at this critical juncture, they are pro- 
vided with the means of becoming acquainted with its pre- 
cepts. To this judicious measure, it is ascribed, that the 
Jews were never more chargeable with the sin of idolatry. 
This had been their besetting sin, and a chief cause of their 
sufferings. They now saw the denunciations of the law 
against it in all its righteous terrors, and they could no 
more be allured to the worship of false deities. Their sa- 
cred books became more and more dear to them ; they 
preserved them to the minutest letter with religious devo- 
tion, and it is owing to that scrupulous care, that they are 
handed down to us in their original purity. 

Charles. We are more indebted to the Jews than I had 
supposed. I shall not in future dislike them as I used to do. 

Mother, To dislike any class of people, my son, is a 
breach of that charity which we are commanded to exercise 
tov^^ards the whole world of mankind. The descendants 
of Shem are entitled to our affectionate regard : if they are 
now blind to their best interests, let us pity them ; but let 
us not forget their claims to our veneration, enumerated in 
that pathetic plea of the apostle — " To them pertained the 
adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving 
of the law, and the service of God and the promises, whose 
are the fathers, and of whom, as concerning the flesh, 
Christ came, who is over all, God blessed forever!" (Rom. 
ix. 4,5.) 



( 333 ) 

PROPHECY 



Mother. We have now gone through the historical 
books of the Old Testament, and have concluded the an- 
nals of the Jews, so far as they are contained in those 
books. We have noticed others which, though not strictly- 
historical, were connected with our subject-— were written 
by Jews — and by them were comprised in the sacred ca- 
non. The writings of the prophets are of this description. 
I have noticed them occasionally, but our plan would be 
incomplete without some further account of their contents. 
W^hat I shall say must be necessarily imperfect, for these 
sublime compositions contain a mass of instruction beyond 
my ability to communicate. To estimate their value, you 
must read some of those works which pious and learned 
men have given to the world on this most interesting topic. 
" Newton's Dissertations" are very full and satisfactory. 
He has shown that tlie history of the nations is the accom- 
plishment of prophecy ; and consequently, that the Scrip- 
tures were given by Divine inspiration. 

All the gentile nations with whom the Israelites had 
much intercourse, were noticed by the prophets. Their 
prosperity is described, and their downfall is predicted. 
We read of many of which there are now no traces upon 
the earth ! 

The conquest or the extermination of the Amalekites, 
the Idumeans, and the Moabites, as foretold by Moses 
and Balaam, was effected during the reign of the Hebrew 
kings, or soon after that period^ But Babylon and Tyre, 
Egypt and Nineveh, denounced by later prophets, were 
spared to fill the pages of profane, as well as sacred 
history. 

Catherine. Did not these mighty states show some 
symptoms of decay when their ruin was foretold 1 

Mother. No. They were in the meridian of their 
glory, and betrayed to the human eye no symptom of 
decline, from which sagacity might calculate their down- 
fall, unless it might be predicted on their vice and luxury* 



334 PROPHECIES. 

Tyre, " the daughter of Sidon," as she is called, and 
after her the greatest and most ancient city of the Phoeni- 
cians — the most celebrated place in the world for its trade 
and navigation — " a mart of nations, the crowning city, 
whose merchants were princes, whose traffickers were the 
honourable of the earth," was consigned to destruction by 
the prophets Joel and Amos, for her enmity to the chosen 
people, for exulting in their ruin, and for selling the cap- 
tives of Judah like the cattle in their markets. Joel says, 
" the children also of Judah and the children of Jerusalem 
have ye sold ; behold I will return your recompense upon 
your own head ; and will sell your sons and your daugh- 
ters." Ezekiel, Isaiah, and Jeremiah likewise uttered many 
prophecies against them. Isaiah, at least one hundred and 
twenty-five years before the event, declared that Tyre 
would be destroyed, and Ezekiel expressly names Nebu- 
chadnezzar as the destroyer. 

.A celebrated writer has comprised the predictions against 
it in the following particulars : " That the city was to be 
taken and destroyed by the Chaldeans, who were, at the 
time of the delivery of the prophecy, an inconsiderable 
people, and particularly by Nebuchadnezzar, king of 
Babylon ; that the inhabitants should fly over the Mediter- 
ranean into the islands and countries adjoining, and even 
there should not find a quiet settlement ; that the city 
should be restored after seventy years, and return to her 
gain and merchandise ; that it should be taken and de- 
stroyed again ; that the people should, in time, forsake 
their idolatry, and become converts to the true religion 
and worship of God ; and finally, that the city should be 
totally destroyed, and become only a place for fishers to 
spread their nets upon." 

Of Nineveh, that immense metropolis of Assyria, it was 
declared by Zephaniah, in the reign of Josiah, king of 
Judah, that " an utter end" should be made of her ; that 
Nineveh should be " a desolation and dry like a wilder- 
ness ;" that " flocks should lie down in the midst of her ;" 
" all the beasts of the nations, both the cormorant and the 
bittern, shall lodge in the upper lintels of it, their voice shall 
sing in the windows, desolation shall be in the thresholds." 

Nahum, whose whole book relates solely to the destruc- 



PROPHECIES* 335 

tion of Nineveh, is believed to have prophesied in the 
reign of Hezekiah. He describes the event more fully 
than Zephaniah — and his words are literally come to pass. 

Babylon, another cruel enemy of God's people, became, 
for this cause, obnoxious to divine wrath. After Nineveh 
was destroyed, Babylon became " the queen of the East," 
and although less in extent, she surpassed her predecessor 
in splendour. Her public works excelling in strength and 
grandeur, were justly esteemed amongst the w^onders of 
the world. Yet this stupendous city, whose removal 
might only be supposed among the possibilities of human 
power — this admirable city is called under the figure of a 
proud female " to come down and sit in the dust — for she 
should be swept vAth the besom of destruction !" " Her 
palaces (she is told) should be a den of wild beasts, and 
be inhabited by men no more for ever !"* The prophecies 
against Babylon are very numerousf and particular, even 
to the name of Cyrus, her conqueror, above a hundred 
years before his birth, and to the manner in which the 
eity should be taken. A second siege of the city, by 
Darius, after the death of Cyrus, and the cruelties he 
should exercise on the vanquished people, is also foretold. 
In the fourteenth chapter of Isaiah, the rapt bard, foresee- 
ing, by divine prescience, the ruin of Babylon accomplish- 
ed, and the proud oppressor of nations broke in pieces, 
breaks out into that incomparable ode, which is said to 
have no parallel in the utmost efforts of human genius. 
Inimitably sublime in thought, and regular in construction, 
it is called the most perfect model of lyric poetry.i: 

Of Egypt too, the inveterate enemy of the Hebrews, 
and the great academy of the early ages — the prophecies 
are not less various and circumstantial. Noah had de- 
clared that the posterity of Ham should " be a servant of 
servants ;" and now Ezekiel tells them, — they " shall be 
the basest of kingdoms, and governed by strangers." 
Another event, most unlikely to happen in a country de- 
based above all others by the grossest superstitions, it was 

* Isaiah, in a variety of places. 

t See Jer. 50 and 51 chap, and Isaiah 44 and 45. 

t Lowth's Lectures on Hebrew poetry. 



836 PROl^HECIES. 

foretold should be seen ; that the pure religion of Jehovah 
should be partially known and acknowledged by the 
Egyptians. 

That all these changes and calamities have befallen 
those ancient and celebrated states, we are as well assured, 
as we can be of any thing that our own eyes have not 
seen. Generations preceding us have successively left 
their reports, and these — at least, as to the present con* 
dition of these once flourishing countries — are confirmed 
by an host of modern travellers. 

Nebuchadnezzar, the most powerful king of Babylon, 
invaded Phoenicia and besieged the city of Tyre thirteen 
years — the inhabitants fled with the principal part of their 
property to the neighbouring islands — but there they did 
not " find a quiet settlement" — they were still persecuted 
by their enemy. After seventy years, they again possess- 
ed their city, and " returned to their merchandise." Again 
it became rich, and fell into the hands of the merciless 
Alexander. He put eight thousand of the inhabitants to 
the sword — crucified two thousand, and sold thirty thou- 
sand for slaves to the Jews and others. By means of the 
Jews who lived among them, many became " converts to 
their true religion." In the time of our Saviour, we hear 
of many coming from '' the coasts of Tyre and Sidon" to 
hear him preach " and to be healed of their diseases." 
But the temporal glory of Tyre, never recovered from the 
blow inflicted by Alexander. She has often changed her 
masters, and — such as she is — is now subject to the Turks ; 
" a place only for fishers to dry their nets upon" — her 
walls are a heap of ruins, and her shores whitened by the 
winds and waves — the remains of her stately structures 
afford only a mean shelter to a few wretched fishermen! 

Egypt is the most ancient kingdom of any note, al- 
though her antiquity is not so high as has been pretended. 
But she flourished in wealth and wisdom so early as the 
days of Joseph, and to this day there remain the most 
magnificent monuments of her power. Yet Egypt has 
verified the words of Ezekiel — it has been for ages a base 
kingdom, and has had no prince of its own : for from the 
conquest of Nebuchadnezzar to this day, it has been 
" tributary to strangers." It is now (says Bishop Newton) 



1PR0PHECIES. 337 

a great deal above two thousand years since this prophecy 
was first delivered ; and what likelihood or appearance 
was there, that the Egyptians should for so many years 
bow unto a foreign yoke, and never in all that time be 
able to recover their liberty, and have a prince of their 
own to reign over them ? But, as is the prophecy, so is the 
event. For not long afterwards, Egypt was conquered by 
the Babylonians, and after the Babylonians by the Per- 
sians ; and after the Persians it became subject to the 
Macedonians, and after the Macedonians to the Romans, 
and after the Romans to the Saracens, and then to the 
Mamelukes, and is now a province of the Ottoman em- 
pire." 

But it is also said by the prophet that a great prmce 
should be sent by God, to deliver Egypt from the Persians, 
and that peace and plenty should be restored for a time, 
and that the true religion should be known in that country. 
These things came to pass under Alexander the Great and 
some of the Ptolemies, his successors. Many of the Jews 
dwelt in Egypt at this time, and were highly favoured by 
the prince. They were allowed to exercise their own 
faith, and even to build a temple after the model of that in 
Jerusalem. By these means the Hebrew religion became 
so honourable in Egypt, that a translation of their scrip- 
tures was made into the Greek language, under the aus- 
pices of the king. This translation is called the Septua- 
gint, because it is said to have been made by Seventy or 
Seventy-two learned Jews. 

Historians are not agreed as to the precise time when 
Nineveh was destroyed ; but the fact is incontrovertible. 

Charles, You can at least tell us, mother, who was the 
barbarian, who could destroy such a wonderful city. 

Mother. The barbarians are believed to have been the 
Modes and Babylonians. These heathen warriors were 
not restrained by humanity when they were tempted by a 
rich prize. One so splendid as Nineveh was seldom offer- 
ed to their ambition. That city is supposed to have exist- 
ed about an hundred and fifty years after their temporary 
penitence on the preaching of Jonah. The circumstances 
of its capture and destruction are related by profane his- 
torians, and correspond with the prediction of Nahum. 
29 



338 PROPHECIES. 

But neither the time nor the instruments are of importance 
to us : we know that Nineveh once existed — that it was 
immensely great, and that it is now so completely swept 
away, " that its place is not known !" Who now, when 
the curiosity and enterprise of man has penetrated almost 
every spot on the surface of the globe — who is he that has 
seen those mighty walls that encircled sixty miles — whose 
height was one hundred feet, with fifteen hundred towers 
of two hundred feet in height, and so broad that three 
chariots could drive abreast upon them — or who can say 
that he has discovered even the spot where once they 
stood? 

Of the site of Babylon, " the glory of the kingdoms," 
*' the golden city," there is almost as much uncertainty ! 
Heaps of ruins are found on the Euphrates, where it is 
believed she held her proud domain ; but whether they are 
the remains of her superb edifices, or of some other an- 
cient city, cannot now be ascertained. The place, how- 
ever, is " the resort of doleful creatures," according to the 
prophecy. " The Arabian cannot pitch his tent there, 
neither can the Shepherd make his fold there!" 

Fanny. Was the taking of Babylon by Cyrus^ the 
destruction spoken of by the prophets ? 

Mother, It may be dated from that time, because that 
was the commencement of its ruin. " After this (Bishop 
Newton says) it never more recovered its ancient splen- 
dour : from an imperial, it became a tributary city ; from 
being governed by its own kings, it came itself to be go- 
verned by strangers ; and the seat of empire being trans- 
ferred to Shushan, it decayed by degrees, until it was re- 
duced at last to utter desolation." 

Xerxes, after Darius, committed great depredations upon 
the devoted city. Alexander attempted to repair it, and 
intended to make it the seat of his empire, but his death 
put an end to this project. A ^e\Y years afterwards, 
Seleucia was built in its neighbourhood, and Babylon soon 
became wholly desolate. 

Fanny. Were these nations destroyed solely for their 
oppression of the Jews ? 

Mother. No, certainly — that is assigned as one cause, 
but their vices, independently of that, were sufficiently 



PROPHECIES. 339 

enormous to subject them to the severest vengeance of 
Heaven. Babylon, and Assyria, were especially the ene- 
mies of God's people. The one subverted the kmgdom 
of Israel and carried away the ten tribes ; and the other 
carried the two tribes of Judah into captivity. Of Nineveh, 
the prophet Nahum said—" All that hear the bruit of thee, 
shall clap their hands over thee ; for upon whom hath not 
thy wickedness passed continually." Nor were they less 
cruel to one another. One hundred and sixty years after 
the prophecy of Isaiah, and fifty-six after a similar predic- 
tion by Jeremiah, when Babylon was taken the second 
time by the Medes and Persians, in consequence of their 
rebellion against their masters, and after a siege of twenty 
months— the exasperated victor, in revenge of their pro- 
tracted opposition, ordered three thousand of the principal 
citizens to be crucified ! (B. C. 516.) 

Catherine. Every act of Supreme Wisdom must have 
an end ; but I do not see what good purpose could be 
effected by predictions concerning these nations, inasmuch 
as not being delivered to themselves, they could not ope- 
rate in bringing them to repentance. 

Mother. The light of nature without the aid of pro- 
phecy, might have restrained their gross immorality. 
Reason was not uncultivated amongst them; they had 
poets, historians and philosophers;* and if they were 
ignorant of the prophecies, it was in some measure their 
own fault. They had always much intercourse with the 
inhabitants of Palestine, both before and after the cap- 
tivity, and many of the latter were scattered throughout 
Egypt, and the Assyrian empire ; so that they were not 
wfthout opportunities of knowing the true God, and his 
denunciations against their impiety. Nor are these casual 
privileges alone their accusers. In the reign of Zedekiah, 
the last king of Judah, fifty-six years before Babylon was 
taken by Cyrus, Jeremiah sent a long and circumstantial 
prophecy against Chaldea to that people, by the hand of 
Seraiah, the chamberlain of the palace, who was going 
thither on public business— commanding him to read it 

* Herodotus and Thucydides were cotemporary with Ezra and 
Nehemiah. 



^'^^ PROPHECIES. 

aloud to them, and then binding it to a stone, to cast it 
into the Euphrates, as a type of their fall, to rise no more! 
But to us who have lived to see Tyre in ruins, and the 
mighty Babylon swept away— the prophecies are inesti- 
mable I for to us, they establish the credibility of the mes- 
sengers whose chief errand was of far higher moment : 
and in their cotemporaries, who had not this advantage^ 
the same confidence was inspired by a multitude of pre' 
dictions whose accomplishment they witnessed. 

Catherine. Some things however were foretold such 

as the immediate death of Hezekiah, and the destruction 
of Nmeveh in forty days, which did not come to pass; 
were not such failures calculated to disturb their faith in 
prophecies ? 

Mother. Not at all ; because the denunciation in these 
mstances was clearly conditional ; and must rather be con- 
sidered as threatenings of the penalty incurred by Heze- 
kiah and the Ninevites, than as absolute decrees. We 
may be sure that the design was to awaken them to a 
sense of their guilt, because we are told that the evil was 
averted by their penitence and their prayers. Whatsoever 
IS determined by Him who has the uncontrolled power to 
execute, must assuredly come to pass, because liability to 
change would argue imperfection in Deity : a supposition 
altogether inadmissible. The absolute decrees of the 
great Supreme may exercise our faith, but " except ye re- 
pent, ye shall all likewise perish,'' is to us the practical 
admonition. 

Catherine. The events you have related are certainly 
the fullest evidence of the authenticity of the Scriptures ; 
and to the witnesses and the actors, must have carried 
conviction. But to us, they are like a dream. The great 
length of time that has elaped since their occurrence has 
a tendency to weaken their effect on the mind— and it is 
yet more unfortunate, that an opportunity is thereby af- 
forded for the assertion, that the fact was antecedent to the 
prophecy. 

Mother. Such, indeed, is the feeble constitution of our 
nature ; but the abundance of testimony completely re- 
futes the objection ; whilst to us, the fleeting images of 
the dream, which we are sure did once exist, are continu- 



PROPHECIES. 341 

ally restored by the hourly accomplishment of other pro- 
phecies before our own eyes. We are more highly favour- 
ed than the persons were to whom they were origmally 
delivered ; for, besides the authentic record of the events 
which they saw, we have the addition of facts unknown 
to them. The generations which succeed us, will see still 
further into the scheme of Providence in the government 
of this changing world, by witnessing occurrences, which 
we know will come — but " the time is not yet." 

Fanny, Did you observe, mother, what was said by 

Dr. W a few Sundays ago, about the fulfilment of a 

prophecy concerning the Kenites 1 I did not fully under- 
stand him, and have since neglected to ask an explanation. 

Mother. As it is directly to our purpose, I will here 
relate it. 

There is a prophecy in the thirty-fourth chapter of Jere- 
miah, concerning the Rechabites, which would be passed 
over by common readers, without particular notice, be- 
cause they make no figure in sacred writ, and we had lost 
all knowledge of that people. The Rechabites, or Kenites, 
as they are also called, were descendants of Hobab, the 
brother-in-law of Moses. They had been com.manded by 
their father Jonadab, " to drink no wine, to build no 
houses, nor sow seed, nor plant vineyards, nor have any ; 
but all their days to dwell in tents." For their obedience 
to this command, they were promised by Jeremiah that 
they should not be scattered and lost among the nations— 
(as very many other tribes have been) in these words: 
" Jonadab, the son of Rechab, shall not want a man to 
stand before me for ever." This tribe lived in the desert 
of Arabia, and is supposed to have embraced the Jewish 
religion. Niebuhr and Wolfe speak of them as still in 
existence, still living in tents— and practising some of the 
Mosaic rites. 

Here, you see, is one instance among many, of the 
truth of prophecy. But need we look farther than the 
actual condition of the Jewish nation at this day, so pre- 
cisely accordant with the declaration of the prophets 1 

Moses, on the banks of the Jordan, before their entrance 
into Canaan, reminded them of their repeated '' covenant 
with God, to keep his commandments, and his statutes, 
29* 



342 PROPHECIES. 

because he had taken them to be a peculiar people, and 
had made them high above all nations in praise, and in 
name, and in honour," and most affectingly enumerated 
the various blessings which should follow their obedience. 
But if they did turn aside from their God, that then, the 
reverse of all these blessings should come to pass, and in 
the end, that they should " be rooted out of their land, and 
strangers should possess it — that they should be scattered 
among all people upon the face of the earth — that among 
these they should find no ease, but should be only oppress- 
ed and crushed always, and that these plagues should be 
of long continuance." (Deut. 28.) 

These terrible words of Moses, together with many 
others of the same import, were spoken three thousand 
years ago, and the same things were afterwards predicted 
by later prophets. Seven hundred years before the birth 
of our Saviour, Hosea said, " the children of Israel shall 
abide many days without a king, and without a prince, 
and without a sacrifice." Now here are prophecies that 
have been fulfilling for eighteen hundred years — and are 
daily fulfilling. The Israelites have been rooted out of 
(;heir own land, — they have been dispersed into all the 
nations — there is no inhabited place where they are not 
found, nor have they lived in "ease" and honour any- 
where. The very soul is sickened at the histories of their 
sufferings. Thousands and millions of these injured peo- 
ple have been destroyed by the cruelty and rapacity of 
their rulers, so that had they not been most signally pre- 
served, a standing miracle to the world, the very name of 
a Jew would now be like that of Amalek, " blotted out 
from under heaven !" They have, too, been many days 
without a king and without a sacrifice — everywhere su- 
bordinate, they have no government of their own, nor can 
they have the full exercise of their religion, whilst Jeru- 
salem, the only place where their solemn feasts may be 
held, remains in the hands of their enemies. 

Fanny, The preservation of the Jews under circum- 
stances so unfavourable, would seem plainly to indicate 
some illustrious design, yet to be accomplished. 

Mother, No one who believes the words of Holy Writ, 
entertains any doubt on that subject. They themselves 



PROPHECIES. 



343 



are supported by the prospect of glorious days, to the 
stock of Abraham. Jeremiah, who lived m the declme ot 
the Hebrew State, and whilst the divine judgments were 
suspended, consoles them in this encouraging language— 
" Fear thou not, O Jacob my servant, saith the Lord : for 
I am with thee ; for I will make a full end of all the 
nations whither I have driven thee: but I will not make a 
full end of thee, but correct thee in measure." " I will 
save thee from afar off, and thy seed from the land of 
their captivity ; and Jacob shall return and be m rest and 
at ease, and none shall make him afraid." By the evan- 
gelical prophet Isaiah, they have a multitude of most 
splendid promises. All the beauty and magnificence of 
nature are employed as emblematical of their future peace 
and security. They have therefore abundant reason to 
trust in him who has said—" For a small moment have I 
forsaken thee, but with great mercies will I gather thee. 
In a little wrath I hid my face from thee for a moment; 
but with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee, 
saith the Lord thy Redeemer." " The sons also of them 
that afflicted thee shall come bending unto thee ; and all 
thev that despised thee, shall bow themselves down at the 
soles of thy feet ; and they shall call thee, the city of the 
Lord ; the Zion of the Holy One of Israel." " I will 
make thee an eternal excellency, a joy of many gene- 
rations"—" And they shall dwell in the land that I have 
given unto Jacob my servant, wherein your fathers have 
dwelt, and they shall dwell therein, even they and their 
children and their children's children, for ever ; and my 
servant David shall be their prince for ever." 

Catherine. What is meant by the promise that Damd 
should be their prince for ever ? 

Mother, It is not to be supposed, that the name of 
David in this place is to be literally understood; that 
David, the son of Jesse, is to be raised from the dead to 
become again the prince of Israel. We must then seek 
an explanation in the figurative style of the prophetic 
writings ; and your question introduces us easily to an- 
other branch of prophecy, and to that which was its chief 
object, the promise of the Messiah. 

The divine Mediator between God and man, the Lord 



344 PROPHECIES. 

Jesus Christ, was to proceed from the Hebrew nation, and 
was first to preach his gospel to them. Hence it was 
proper that such an expectation should be kept up amongst 
them — and hence also it was proper, that amongst them, 
the prophets in succession should arise — for " to Him give 
all the prophets witness." Before the calling of Abraham 
from the Gentiles, the Redeemer had been revealed to 
Adam, and the patriarchs ; but in language so obscure, 
that their conceptions of the extent of the blessing were 
probably very imperfect. Advancing in time, revelations 
become more lucid — the clouds disperse, and the " Sun of 
righteousness," in his nature, his person and his offices, is 
in their view. 

After the separation of Abraham, that patriarch was 
told that in his posterity all the nations of the earth should 
he blessed — thus intimating the incarnate nature of the 
Messiah. If he descended from the human family, he 
must partake of human nature, whilst the vast extent of 
the promised blessing would seem beyond the utmost pow- 
ers of a mere mortal to bestow. In the prophetic discourse 
of Jacob, just before his death, he names his son Judah, 
as he, from whose tribe the blessing should descend. 
Balaam speaks in general terms of the Star^ that should 
arise out of Jacob. David describes him as a man^ afflict- 
ed, persecuted, and forsaken by his God — and again, as 
" exalted to the right hand of the Omnipotent," " a priest 
forever^ after the order of Melchisedek" — as the Son of 
the Most High, having the whole earth for a possession. 
Other particulars are successively disclosed. Bethlehem 
is designated as the place of his birth, and the very year 
of his public appearance is pointed out. In the reign of 
Hezekiah, or about that period, Micah says — " But thou, 
Bethlehem-Ephratah, though thou be little among the thou- 
sands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto 
me that is to be Ruler in Israel ; whose goings forth have 
been of old, from everlasting !" And during the captivity, 
the prophet Daniel declares, at the end of seventy weeks 
from the commission to Ezra to rebuild the temple, that is, 
according to the prophetic mode of computation, taking 
each day for a year — at the end of four hundred and 



PROPHECIES. 345 

ninety years,"^ " the Messiah should come" — " the Most 
Holy should be anointed," '' should be cut off, but not for 
himself." And Haggai and Malachi, the last of the pro- 
phets, encouraging the Jews to proceed with spirit in re- 
building the temple, declare, " The glory of this latter 
house shall be greater than of the former, saith the Lord 
of Hosts," " for the Lord whom they sought should sud- 
denly come to his temple, even the messenger of the cove- 
nant !" 

Besides this series of historical revelation, innumerable 
are the passages, which supported the hope of Israel. 
Sometimes they were literal ; sometimes metaphorical. 
Of the former, is that splendid description by Isaiah, who, 
for the number and explicitness of his prophecies con- 
cerning the Messiah, has been called the evangelical pro- 
phet. — Speaking of the glory of his kingdom, he says, 
" the people that walketh in darkness have seen a great 
light : they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, 
upon them hath the light shined." " For, unto us a child 
is born, unto us a son is given ; and the government shall 
be upon his shoulders, and his name shall be called Won- 
derful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Fa- 
ther, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his go- 
vernment and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne 
of David and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to estab- 
lish it with judgment, and with justice, from henceforth 
even for ever." 

The whole religious ritual of the Jews was a metaphori- 
cal representation of the death and atonement of Jesus 
Christ. Both the patriarchal and mosaical dispensations 
were preparatory to that which he should introduce. Dis- 
tinguished men were therefore raised up from time to time, 
to be types or representatives of him. David was one of 
these, and one of the most eminent. Hence the applica- 
tion of his name in the passage which occasioned your 
question, and in many others, to that august personage. 

Moses was another illustrious type of the Messiah. In 
his last address to the Israelites, he promised them a future 

* See Prideaux, part 1. Book 5. where it is shown that this pro- 
phecy was exactly fulfilled to the very year and month. 



346 PROPHECIES. 

prophet like unto himself, resembling him in many re- 
spects, but in one characteristic so remarkable as at once 
to justify the application. "The Lord your God (said he) 
will raise up unto you a prophet like unto me — according 
to all that thou desiredst of the Lord thy God in Horeb, 
in the day of the Assembly, saying, Let me not hear again 
the voice of the Lord my God, neither let me see this 
great fire any more that I die not." When the Israelites 
were brought into the immediate presence of the Deity to 
receive the written law, and the insupportable emblems of 
his wrath shook the earth under their feet, and burst in 
tremendous liohtning-s from the mountain ; overcome with 
terror they intreated, that they might not any more hear 
the voice of Omnipotence, but that a Mediator might in- 
terpose to declare all his will. Moses became that media- 
tor, and thus he was the most illustrious type of that 
" prophet who should be raised up like unto him." 

In addition to these two classes of prophecy, or such as 
directly foretold a specified event, and such as spoke in 
symbols, in conformity to the genius of the oriental na- 
tions — there is yet a third, which are to be understood in 
what is called a double sense ; that is, they relate pri- 
marily to one person, or event, and remotely to another ; 
they are descriptive of both, but not so perfectly, as to 
admit of an exclusive application to either. 

Catherine* Examples of these would assist our discern- 
ment when we read for ourselves. 

Mother. In a vast variety of instances, the future 
peace of the Christian church, is prefigured in promises 
to the Jewish nation, under the titles of the house of 
Jacob — Jerusalem — Zion — and the mountain of the House 
of the Lord, in allusion to the temple which stood on 
Mount Zion. Glorious days are promised to them when 
Israel and Judah shall be collected from the four quarters 
of the globe, in such language as this : 

" Lo ! these shall come from afar 

" And lo ! these from the north and the west, 

" And these from the land of Sinim. 

*^ Sing aloud, O ye heavens ; and rejoice, O earth ; 

** Ye mountains burst forth into song : 



PROPHECIES- 347 

" For Jehovah hath comforted his people, 
" And will have compassion on his afflicted."* 
Such superlative pictures of the final glory of Israel, 
can only be referred to that time when they, with all other 
nations, shall submit to the sceptre of the Redeemer, and 
the Millennium of the Christian church shall embrace the 
whole earth. The splendid passages which foretel the 
great prosperity of the Jews, after their deliverance from 
Babylon by the Persian prince, the destruction and com- 
plete subjugation of their enemies to the very people whom 
they had oppressed, were never fully realized. They are 
not yet made " an eternal excellency ;" " a joy of many 
generations." These predictions must therefore be refer- 
red, in analogy to the whole scheme of revelation, in a 
secondary sense to the glorious reign of the gospel ; when 
both Jews and Gentiles shall be one church under Jesus 
Christ the deliverer — when his disciples shall be released, 
both from the Mosaic ritual, and from the guilt and bond- 
age of sin. " These two events" (says the elegant trans- 
lator of Isaiah) " the prophet connects together, and hard- 
ly ever treats of the former, without throwing in some 
intimations of the latter. Nay, sometimes, he is so fully 
possessed with the glories of the remoter kingdom under 
the Messiah, that he seems almost to lose sight of the 
more immediate object of his mission." 

Catherine, I do not know how the Jews, understand 
the prophecies — of course it must be differently from our 
interpretation. 

Mother. With respect to all those which predict the 
calamities which should come upon their nation for its 
sins, they agree with us — and admit, that they are under 
them to this day. These having corresponded to the very 
letter of the predictions — they maintain, that the promises 
of pardon and recompense, when their punishment has 
come to an end — must be as literal. They reject the 
spiritual sense assigned to many of them by christian com- 
mentators, and altogether the double sense, in which we 
believe some to have been spoken. The Messiah, so 
specially promised to their fathers, they believe will be a 



* See Lovvth's translation of Isaiah, Chap. 49. 



348 PROPHECIES. 

temporal Prince, who will bring them from all the nations 
where they are scattered, and signally punish their oppres- 
sors — that he will rebuild their Temple, establish their 
nation in more glory than it knew under any former king, 
and that Peace, both perfect and universal, will then bless 
the earth. Now, say they, these things are all plainly 
foretold by the prophets — and since they did not come to 
pass, at the advent of Jesus Christ — he was not the pro- 
mised Messiah. They confidently expect another who 
will verify to them the words of Isaiah, which we apply 
to the future state of the Christian church. 

" Thus saith the Lord Jehovah : 

Behold, I will lift up my hand to the nations : 

And to the people will I exalt my signal ; 

And they shall bring thy sons in their bosom, 

And thy daughters shall be borne on their shoulders ; 

And kings shall be thy foster-fathers. 

And their queens thy nursing mothers : 

With their faces to the earth they shall bow down unto 
thee, 

And shall lick the dust of thy feet ; 

And thou shalt know, that I am Jehovah, 

And that they who trust in him, shall not be ashamed." 



( 349) 



JOB. 



Fanny. Mother, you have now finished the Old Tes- 
tament, without once mentioning the Book of Job. You 
have, I believe, named every other,— why did you omit 

that? . , - 

Mother. The Book of Job was omitted, because it is 
wholly unconnected with the history of which we have 
spoken. Job was not a Jew, nor does he appear to have 
known any thing of that people, but rather to have lived 
some ages before that people became a nation. 

Fanny, Why, then, is his story inserted amongst the 
sacred writings, which are chiefly devoted to their af- 

fairs. 

Mother. By the sacred writings, we do not mean 
merely such books as were connected with the Jewish 
history, but all the inspired books which have come down 
to us; and considering the scrupulous care that has been 
most religiously devoted to their preservation, it may be 
presumed that we now possess all that did ever bear the 
sacred stamp. We have histories of the Jews by some 
profane authors, and frequent allusions to them by others- 
We read of" the Book of Jasher^' " the Book of Iddo the 
seer,'' and " the Book of the wars of the Lord ;" these 
were historical, but probably not inspired; otherwise, 
they would not have been lost, as they now certainly are. 
But this sublime poem has been treasured up with the 
sacred rolls of the Jews from the earliest period of their 
written history, and is transmitted with them for our in- 
struction. It has all the marks of divine inspiration ; its 
views of the Deity are the most elevated, and its moral 
sentiments the most pure: we conclude, then, that it was 
delivered to them by their revered legislator, from whom 
alone, perhaps, they would have received a rule of laith 
and manners. 
30 



350 AUTHENTICITY OF THE BOOK. 

Catherine, By whom was it written ? 

Mother. That is a question which divides comment- 
ators. Some have assigned it to Moses, and some to Job 
hiniself. Some have supposed it to have been written by 
i:.iihu, one of the actors in the drama, whilst others have 
not scrupled to bring it down so late as the time of 
l^zra ; but so various are the opinions on this uncertain 
subject, that still others, and intermediate persons, between 
the first and the last named, are supported as the au- 
thors. 

No book of Scripture has been more severely scrutinized 
than this. The reality of Job's existence, the period and 
the place in which he lived, as well as the pen to which 
we are indebted for this portion of his story, have been all 
niade the subjects of very able discussion. The time and 
the design of its publication have also been examined, 
bome writers, more fanciful than wise, have imagined the 
whole book to be an allegory or fable, agreeably to the 
eastern mode of giving lessons. Whilst others, with more 
reason, defend the literal truth of every circumstance re- 
lated, admitting, however, that the dialogue is ornamented 
by the florid language, without which a conversation could 
not have been reduced to measured numbers consistently 
with the elegance required in an epic poem. But all these 
disputed points are put to rest by the successful labours of 
commentators* all competent to the work. It is not ne- 
ce^ssary that I should rehearse all the arguments on either 
sia% — an abstract on each particular will prepare you to 
read their works, and to study the sublime original. I 
shall only premise, that it is allowed on all hand^ to be a 
poem of the most lofty character, excepting the first two 
and the last chapters, which are plain narrative, and that 
it is replete with instruction. 

Catherine. On what ground is the reality of his exist- 
ence questioned, when the patience of Job is proposed as 
an example by the apostle James ?t 

Mother. Objections are made to the transactions re- 
lated in the exordium. That the adversary of mankind 

* Gray, Magee, Peters, Home, <fec. f James v. 11, 



AtTTHENTlClTY OP THE BOOK. 351 

should have appeared with the " sons of God" before the 
throne of the Omnipotent, and have obtained permission to 
brino- a succession of calamities beyond the common lot 
of m'ortals, on a righteous man, say the objectors, appears 
fabulous, and the protraction of the patriarch's days to the 
amount of a hundred and forty years after his trial, is in- 
consistent with the abridgment of man's life after the flood, 
for that he lived after that catastrophe is evident from the 

text. . 

Now the experience of every age, m accordance with 
the w^ords of inspiration, is sufficient proof that the pa- 
tience and resignation of the most pious are often severely 
tried by afflictK)n. That Satan may be the agent, is also 
clear. He tempted Eve in Paradise, and our Saviour in 
the wilderness ; but in what manner he obtains his com- 
mission, or what takes place in the celestial regions re- 
specting this awful arrangement, is amongst the secret 
things of God, which we are not permitted to know. If 
the fact is to be communicated to mortals, it must be done 
in some way compatible with human comprehension. 
Hence Satan is represented as appearing in the court of 
the Most High, and obtaining leave to try the faith of one 
who was honoured with the appellation of " a perfect and 
upright man." Another argument against the reality of 
the whole story is assumed from its m.etaphorical style, in 
the debate between Job and his companions. In answer 
to this, it is not necessary to contend that every word is 
related as it was spoken, although much may be allowed 
to the known figurative style of Arabia, the country in 
which the scene is laid. If the sentiments are preserved, 
the dignified form into which the poem is cast, does not 
impugn the reality of the events. Besides, to the testi- 
mony" of an apostle, w^e have added that of a prophet, 
(Ezekiel, xiv. 14,,) concerning the existence of such a 
man as Job. And with respect to the number of his years, 
they did not so far exceed that of other patriarchs (con- 
sidering too that he was but young at the date of his trial) 
that we may not suppose him to have been favoured with 
an extraordinary length of hfe, as a reward of his pious 
fortitude, and a gracious compensation for his extraordi- 
nary sufferings. 



352 



TIME OF JOB. 



Job IS called " the greatest of all the men of the East," 
by the inspired historian. " The whole region between 
Egypt and the Euphrates, was called the East, at first in 
respect to Egypt, and afterwards absolutely, and without 
any relation to situation or circumstances."* He dwelt 
in the land of Uz, which is said to be a district of Arabia, 
lying between Egypt and Philistia. Having discovered 
the place of Job's residence, there is no difficulty in ascer- 
taining the period at which he flourished. The whole 
complexion of the book in question bears the mark of high 
antiquity. He was the priest of his own /amily, accord- 
ing to patriarchal custom, and offered sacrifices for his 
children and his friends ; consequently he lived before the 
institution of a regul-ar priesthood by Moses, to which alone 
belonged this privilege after the promulgation of the law. 
He offered them at his own dwelling, whereas the Levites, 
as you know, might sacrifice only at the consecrated 
tabernacle. Had there been a law, the acknowledged 
piety of Job would have restrained him from transgressino- 
It. His wealth is reckoned by his flocks— he had seven 
thousand sheep, and three thousand camels, besides an 
immense herd of cattle : he therefore led a pastoral life— 
the earliest occupation of man. 

Our Bible chronology dates the trial of Job about 
twenty-nine years before the Exodus from Egypt. That 
there is no allusion to such a nation as the Israelites, or 
their peculiar system, to the miracles by which they were 
delivered from the cruel hand of Pharoah, or by which 
they were sustained forty years in a desert, is abundant 
evidence that he lived anterior to these wonderful events. 
Their number, and their notoriety, must have reached the 
ears of those who lived in the very neighbourhood where 
they occurred. Sodom, Gomorrah, and the other cities 
of the plain, lay still nearer to the land of Uz— all the 
people of Idumea must have known of their miraculous 
ruin, yet none of all these most remarkable transactions 
are mentioned in the conversation between Job and his 
companions— a conversation which turning chiefly on 

* Hojrne's Introduction to tiae Study of the Bible. 



TIME OF JOB. 353 

the power of God, and the manner of his deahngs with 
Ihe children of men, afforded an opportunity so favoura- 
ble, that they must have been noticed had they taken 
place before that time. It is also observable, that all 
these men, though coming from different parts of Arabia, 
spoke the same language, the original Hebrew ; from 
which it would appear, that they conversed together on 
this memorable occasion before it was corrupted into dif- 
ferent dialects by the posterity of Abraham. 

It is well known that of all the various forms by which 
the true religion was debased, amongst the most ancient 
was the worship of the sun and moon ; and to this alone 
is there any allusion in the book of Job. 

From these, and other arguments, the high antiquity of 
this incomparable book is completely proved. Home, a 
late writer of great erudition, collecting them all — con- 
cludes the time of Job to have been eight hundred and 
eighteen years after the deluge, and one hundred and 
eighty-four before the birth o"f Abraham, which would 
ca'rry it back som.e ages beyond the date in our common 
Bibles. But it is a nicer point to determine by whom this 
interesting story was written. It may have been the work 
of Job himself^ but the thirty-second chapter affords a 
strong presumption that Elihu was the author. Moses 
having found it during his long exile in Midian, might de- 
liver Tt to his rebellious people in the desert, as a correc- 
tive of their unthankful temper, and an encouragement to 
submission, by the rewards that are there held out to quiet 
suffering. 

Catherine. It would then appear that this is the oldest 
book in the world, even more ancient than the Pentateuch. 
I should now be glad to have some account of the argu- 
ment which is beyond my present comprehension. I hope 
it will not be always so, but that I may hereafter obtain a 
better knowledge, both of this and every other part of 
sacred writ. 

Mother, I am only able to give you a general view of 
a composition so magnificent : although it contains instruc- 
tion the most obvious, it is yet veiled to the most illustri- 
ous scholars, by our imperfect knowledge of the eastern 
30* 



S54 



TEiAts or* Jos. 



idioms, and by the transcendent nature of the subject. 
The God of nature is discovered in his works. We see 
—we feel — we admire and adore ! Much is given to exer- 
cise the intellectual faculties of man, but much more is 
exalted beyond his best attainments. Of his justice and 
his mercy we see the effects in his moral government, but 
we are often lost in conjecture when we attempt to scan 
the reason of his dispensations. These high matters were 
the chief subject of debate between Job and his disputa- 
tious friends. Guided only by the light of nature and 
tradition, and destitute of the revelation with which we are 
favoured, although they often " spoke amiss," it is yet sur- 
prismg that they were in general so correct. 

Job was a man of great eminence, a prince perhaps, or 
a magistrate in the land of Uz. Endowed with wisdom, 
wealth, and virtue, he was reverenced by every class of 
society. His children had grown to maturity, and misfor- 
tune had not violated his dwelling. Encompassed by all 
the blessings of domestic and social life, he seemed almost 
beyond its reach. But suddenly he is bereft of all ! Neigh- 
bouring bands of roving Chaldeans overrun his fields— his 
flocks and herds are swept away, and the shepherds and 
ploughmen put to the sword ! Scarcely had these disasters 
reached his ears, when the blow is repeated by another 
messenger. All his childrcn assembled at a feast in their 
elder brother's house, are crushed to death in its fall, by a 
fierce whirlwind ! Such a tide of accumulated evils might 
well have burst the heart of a father, and a man ! But' in 
the midst of prosperity Job had prepared his heart for a 
reverse. Whilst his sons and daughters had gone from 
house to house at some festive season, the pious patriarch 
had "risen early in the morning, and offered burnt offer- 
mgs, according to the number of them all." " It may be," 
said he, " that my sons have sinned in a moment of in- 
temperance, and blasphemed their Creator." Thus he 
stood ready to submit to the divine will, in that beautiful 
ascription to his unquestioned sovereignty, which fell with- 
out a murmur from his lips. " The Lord gave, and the 
Lord hath taken away — Blessed be the name of the Lord." 
But this was not all— the saint was to be yet further 



HIS RESIGI^ATION. 355 

proved. He is smitten with " sore boils, from the sole of 
his foot to his crown !" His wife, who seems not to have 
borne affliction with the same placid temper, was astonish- 
ed that he should yet confide in Jehovah — but he silenced 
her : " What," said he, " shall we receive good at the hand 
of God, and not evil ?" " In all this," adds the historian, 
" Job sinned not with his lips." Happy would it be for 
you and me, who have the assured hope of rejoining our 
pious friends after death, could we give them up with the 
same obedient spirit. 

Fanny, Was he altogether without that consoling 

hope? 

Mother. By some it has been supposed that he was. 
By others, his belief in a future state of glory, through 
the intercession of a Redeemer, is supposed to be clearly 
marked in some sentences, which he afterwards uttered. 
Be this as it may, his subdued disposition is entitled to the 
highest praise.. And in this happy state of mind, it is 
probable he would have remained had he been left to him- 
self. But that serenity which the heavy hand of God had 
never moved, was disturbed by man, less merciful — and 
less just. Such unparalleled calamity was soon spread 
far and wide throughout Arabia, and three men, his par- 
ticular friends, Bildad, Zophar, and Eliphaz, all men of 
rank in Idumea, came together to condole with him. They 
had heard of the loss of his immense property— the death 
of all his children — and of his own agonizing disease — 
but when they approached him, w^hom they had seen seat- 
ed in the gate dispensing the law — the most honourable in 
ail the land — " before whom the princes refrained talking, 
and the nobles held their peace— in whose presence the 
aged arose, and the young men shrunk away," when they 
now saw him stretched upon the earth, a loathsome spec- 
tacle from which his own domestics turned away — amaze- 
ment, grief, and horror, struck them dumb — they sate 
down by him on the ground, and for days and nights no 
one broke the solemn silence of unutterable wo ! In this 
interval of meditation, the sympathy of pitying friendship 
gave way to the cooler dictates of erroneous reason. They 
w^ere themselves virtuous and had flourished in uninterrupt- 



^^^ Job's comforters. 

ed joy,— they were not overwhelmed by misery m every 
tortunng shape like the wretched Job—piety in* them had 
found a rich reward— whence then the uncommon weight 
of wo that had befallen him? Surely, they concluded, 
his religion was but a vain pretence, and the hypocrite 
was now exposed by the just judgment of a righteous 
Kuler. When, therefore, the sufferer at length broke out 
into a passionate lamentation, even execrating the day he 
first beheld the light— they advised him to confess his 
secret sins, and thus conciliate an offended God ! Con- 
scious of the integrity of a well-spent life, he firmly pleads 
his innocence. This they refused to admit, his unsullied 
reputation notwithstanding. A dialogue then ensues, in 
which the comforters contend, that the wicked only are 
punished, whilst the upright are protected, and crowned 
with temporal blessings. "Remember," they say, "who 
ever perished, being innocent, or where were the righteous 
cut off? They that plough iniquity and sow wickedness 
reap the same." They even cruelly intimate, that his 
children had. sinned, and were cut off for their transgres- 
sions. They -magnify the divine attributes, they contend 
that God is just. "Happy is the man," says Eliphaz, 
"whom God correcteth, therefore despise not thou the 
chastening of the Almighty." He accuses Job, whose 
wisdom and benevolence had -heretofore supported others, 
of weakness in sinking under his ov/n calamity. "Be- 
hold, thou hast instructed many, and thou hast strengthen- 
ed the feeble knees ; but novv it is come upon thee, and 
thou faintest." So hard is it to judge of that which ex- 
perience has not made us feel ! Zoph^ir reproves him for 
vindicating his own righteousness, against the justice of 
the Great Supreme. " God," said he, " exacteth less of 
thee than thine iniquity deserveth." But the sufferer 
answers—" To him that is afflicted, pity should be shown 
from his friends"— he desires only death — " even that it 
would please God to destroy him — to be hidden in the 
grave, where the wicked cease from troubling, and where 
the weary are at rest. Where the prisoners rest together, 
and hear not the voice of the oppressor." He confesses 
his own unworthiness and the absolute power of Jehovah, 



job's defence. 357 

but inasmuch as he is nothing in His hands, he expostu- 
lates with Him on His excessive rigour— and complams 
that vice and virtue are not distinguished in His admmis- 

(ration. . 

Zophar reproves him harshly for attemptmg to know 
the mind of the Omnipotent, and for vindicating himself: 
again accuses him of unknown crimes, and beseeches him 
to repent. Exasperated, at length, by the unfeeling acri- 
mony of his accusers, while yet they lay no specific sm to 
his charge. Job ridicules their affected wisdom, as if he 
were ignorant, who had been their teacher! — "Miserable 
comforters," cried he, "are ye all!" He pathetically 
laments his altered state, and entreats their compassion. 
"Have pity upon me — have pity upon me, O ye my 
friends ! for the hand of God hath touched me !" But in 
vain he asks their pity, and in vain he contrasts his fallen 
state with the days when the light of God shined on his 
tabernacle. " When the Almighty was yet with me, when 
my children were about me," he cries, " when the ear 
heard me then it blessed me, and when the eye saw me it 
gave witness to me. Because I delivered the poor that 
cried, and the fatherless, and him that had none to help 
him — the blessing of him that was ready to perish came 
upon me, and I caused the widow's heart to sing for joy : 
the cause which I knew not I searched out." In vain he 
calls upon them to attest the active usefulness and integrity 
of his whole life, recounting, eloquently, his deeds of jus- 
tice and of charity. In vain he contends, " that the wick- 
ed are oflen prosperous all their days;" that "they are 
reserved to the day of destruction;" and confidently in- 
vokes the wrath of his Omniscient Judge, if he had glori- 
ed in his wealth, or had perverted his power or his pos- 
sessions to the purposes of pride or oppression — or if he 
had been betrayed into idolatry, when he "beheld the sun 
when it shined, or the moon walking in brightness;" and 
ardently desires that the Almighty would appear, and per- 
mit him to plead his cause in His presence! 

Argument and asseveration were alike lost on his hard- 
hearted accusers. Unmoved by the pathetic appeal of 
their suffering friend, and still persuaded that he had en- 



358 ELIHU REPROVES UIS C03IF0RTERS. 

joyed an unmerited reputation, yet unable to name the 
turpitude they suspected, and displeased that they could not 
drive him to a voluntary confession of his guiit, they are 
at length silent. Elihu, then, who seems to have joined 
the company while they were engaged in conversation, — 
because he is not named in the beginning, — and who had 
not yet spoken, now arose ; and, after apologizing for his 
interference, because he " v/as young and they were xery 
old," he declares that he had listened attentively to the 
debate, and had discovered that " great men are not al- 
w-ays wise, neither do the aged always judge correctly," 
evidently reproving the pretended friends for the severity 
with, which they had irritated the virtuous patriarch. He 
then turns to Job, and tells him, that he had erred in 
justifying himself rather than , God ; that by affirming 
himself to be altogether perfect, he had arraigned the 
wisdom and the justice of the Sovereign ; that virtue 
could not entitle a creature to exemption from calamity, 
because it could not profit the self-sufficient Creator ; that 
the counsels of God are not to be developed by finite man, 
but his chastisements are to be received with humiility ; 
that the righteous and the prosperous are afflicted to re- 
mind them of their dependence on the Great Supreme. 
" If they obey and serve him," he adds, " they shall spend 
their days in prosperity and their years in pleasure." He 
speaks in glowing terms of the magnificence of the Cre- 
ator's w^orks, and admonishes Job to reverence the Deity. 

From the language of Elihu, he would seem to be the 
author of the whole narrative. In the introduction to his 
speech, he says — ^' When / had waited," (for they spake 
not, but stood still, and answered no more,) " / said, I 
will answer my part, / will also show mine opinior ;" 
thus speaking in the first person, v/hereas the other spe- k- 
ers are always quoted in the third. 

When Elihu had ceased speaking, then comes the irost 
majestic part of the poem, a conclusion that cannot be isur- 
passed in grandeur. " The Lord ansv/ered Job out of a 
whirlwind." This is mysterious language to us, nor do 
w^e pretend to know how the Invisible Spirit spoke to man. 
A voice, probably, was heard in the whirlwind, and words 



PROSPERTTY RESTORED TO JOB. 359 

were pronounced becoming a Deity to utter. Job is re- 
proved for presuming to scan the moral government of 
God, the meanest of whose works he cannot understand. 
He is called upon to contemplate the works of creation, 
and see if he is able to imitate the least of them. "Where 
wast thou," (it is asked) " when I laid the foundations of 
the earth ?" — " when the morning stars sang together, and 
all the sons of God shouted for jo}^ — when the bars and 
the doors of the unfathomable deep were set," and the 
ramno; floods were restrained bv the hioh command. — 
" Hitherto shalt thou come, but no further, and here shall 
thy proud waves be stayed." He asks, if man can con- 
trol the paths of light or darkness : can he direct the stars 
in their annual round, cr set limits to their dominion ? 
Thunders, and lightnings, and clouds, and rain, and hail, 
and ice, and snow, are all arrayed in grand succession, to 
show the astonished auditors their comparative impotence. 
Descending from the firmament the august speaker con- 
tinues to display his transcendent attributes in a few speci- 
mens, though but very few indeed, of animated matter — 
the eagle who mounts on high at His comm.and — the pea- 
cock who proudly spreads his glittering plumes, and the 
young raven " v/ho cries to God for food — the wild goat 
that leaps fearlessly fi'om the craggy rock, and the lion 
w^ho prowls the forest for his prey — the w^arlike horse, 
" whose neck is clothed with thunder," and the stupendous 
whale, (Leviathan,) " before whom the mighty are afraid," 
— All, all, are the w^ork of His hands : — " w^ho, then," He 
asks, " is able to stand before me ?" 

This appalling address produces the intended effect, — 
Job is humbled, and confesses, '^ Behold, I am vile, what 
shall I answer thee? I will lay my hand upon my mouth.". 
*' I have heard of Thee by the hearing of the ear, but 
now mine eye seeth Thee — wherefore, I abhor myself, and 
repent in dust and ashes." 

The three friends of the penitent Job are then told, " ye 
have not spoken of me the thing that is right, as my ser- 
vant Job hath ;" and they are commanded, to go to him, 
and offer up for themselves a burnt offering — and his 
prayer for them should be accepted. Job is afterwards 



860 PROSPERITY RESTORED TO JOB. 

restored to health, and his friends and relations visit him 
with presents and gratulations. Sons and daughters again 
bless his dwelling — prosperity, even more affluent than he 
had enjoyed before his trial, is again bestowed upon him, 
and a hundred and forty years being added to his life, he 
lived to instruct four succeeding generations, by the wis- 
dom and the piety which experience had added to his 
Original endowments. 



THE END. 



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